The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Digging deep for veterans
A Fife veteran is digging deep to help raise awareness of the trauma of war. Prize-winning Ballingry gardener Ray Howie is laying the ground for Gardening Scotland next month with a special entry.
A FIFE veteran is digging deep to help raise awareness of the trauma of war.
Prize-winning Ballingry gardener Ray Howie is laying the ground for Gardening Scotland next month with a special entry.
Ray’s Lest We Forget entry will mark the centenary of the First World War.
A trench in the garden will show the conditions of trench warfare and highlight awareness of post traumatic stress disorder suffered by soldiers.
Flags of countries that fought in the war will also feature.
Green-fingered Ray is creating the garden with a team of fellow armed forces veterans and volunteers to raise money for the Thistle Foundation and BackOutThere — both charities which worked with him.
Ray, 43, spent more than seven years in The Black Watch, serving in Belize, Kenya and Northern Ireland.
He suffered multiple serious injuries before he was medically discharged from the army.
“Seven years after I left I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder,” he said.
“In 2011 I went on the Thistle Foundation self-management course for veterans, which helped me to communicate better and deal with day-to-day things.
“I came out much happier and with a different perspective on things.”
More recently he has been working with BackOut There, heading up a community-project at Yellow craigs beach, working with the community and fellow veterans. “The Lest We Forget garden is a tribute to both charities and all veterans,” he said.
“It’s an acknowledgment that veterans from World War One to the cur rent day still suffer the same with PTSD, although it was known as something quite different back then. “We will also have a surprise twist for the opening of the show as part of the trench. “It will be very realistic.” Since Ray discovered his passion for gardening, he has been inspired to help other ex-servicemen get into gardening.
“The course at Thistle Foundation was run in part by other veterans,” he said.
“It really helped me think about making that next step in life and encouraging other veterans into gardening and horticultural therapy — you could say it planted a seed.
“Veterans need support to get back into their communities.
“For me gardening was the answer. I found it so therapeutic.
“And working with other veterans and seeing how much they enjoy it makes me really driven.
“This year one of the veterans from the Thistle course is coming back to work with me, along with veterans from BackOutThere.
“It’s great to know it’s helping make a difference and to be able to help these two fantastic charities that do great work with veterans,” he said.
Ray is an experienced show gardener and previously picked up bronze awards with the charity Gardening Leave at Gardening Scotland 2012 and 2013 and gold awards at the Ayr Flower Show twice, in 2011 and 2012.
He also won a Fife Council gardening competition three years consecutively and designs flower arrangements for weddings.
His dream is to make it to the Chelsea Flower Show.