Band of brothers’ oasis
Plea to help fund Hollybush breaks
A stressed old soldier is fighting a new campaign - to save festive breaks at an Ayrshire centre of excellence.
Two dozen ailing old comrades descend at Hollybush House every festive season.
Holybush House provides treatment for combat stress to legions of affected military. The charity’s breaks over Christmas especially for single gents who have no family is a life- saver for them.
Now Stephen Tyson has begun a fundraiser after fearing the festive escape needs vital cash to continue.
Stephen, 63, has had an association with the Combat Stress charity for 25 years.
He returned south to his sheltered home in Bradford after leaving Hollybush on January 4.
He has had “Stage 4 cancer” for more than a year and faces the results of new tests this year.
Stephen revealed: “It is suspected that funding for this end of year service at Hollybush is an easy target to cut.
“Most of the men are not used to communicating seriously with a campaign or reaching out.
“But all would appreciate efforts to safeguard this Hollybush House service.
“People might wonder why an Englishman wants to help something over the border. But it is that important to me and I count myself incredibly fortunate to be with comrades.”
The break is no frills, but the 24 men share their experiences and the knock- on boost can last for months. He believes the round the clock care for the week’s respite costs about £ 8000.
But he said: “These men will very likely lose this Christmas respite from now on unless we can get some philanthropic help.”
Stephen describes this week- long annual retreat as his “oasis” and gives everyone a break from their isolation.
In fact, he claims it has saved his sanity. He was posted to BFPO20 in Dortmund, Germany, with the 7th Artillery Brigade and Signal squadron.
A welfare officer first put him in touch with Hollybush after he was given an honourable medical discharge and finally diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorde seven years later.
Stephen said: “I had a crisis of identity following the push and pull of never being settled in one place long enough. It did not help that I lost friends through conflicts when I only suffered a hernia and an eye injury through exercises.
“Then another friend died in a motor- cycle accident. A tough mentalstraw for me was when the authorities wanted to disband the 7th Artillery Unit. I already had insomnia, and simultaneously, there was a pile- up on the autobahn when two more colleagues died and two seriously injured. I was lucky to be thrown- out and clear of the open LandRover we were in.”
Hollybush helped him discover art and he enjoyed the Gardning Leave charity when it was based at Auchencruive.* The Ayrshire Post can put any potential donors in touch with Stephen
These men will very likely lose this Christmas respite