This winter, thousands of people will be Walking Home For Christmas in support of armed forces veterans across the country. The campaign, which runs from 9 to 20 December, is Walking With The Wounded’s annual nationwide fundraising walking challenge to support its work across mental health, employment, volunteering and care coordination.
An estimated 5 million veterans live in the UK. While most of the 15,000+ personnel who leave the forces each year have a successful transition to civilian life, a small but significant minority do not. Walking With The Wounded supports those who served, and their families, to thrive.
There are three key aspects to this year’s Walking Home For Christmas campaign:
#WalkWithAndy
Andy, a former military police officer, will be walking 350 kilometres from the Cenotaph in London to Manchester Cenotaph. He aims to complete this extraordinary challenge in just five days, leaving London on 5 December and arriving in Manchester on 9 December.
The route will be available shortly and there will be interview/photo opportunities at key points during the challenge.
Organised regional walks
New for 2022, Walking With The Wounded has organised regional walks in London, Manchester, and Newcastle on the 9 December. Participants can raise vital funds – and their heart rate – at one of these fun large-scale events. Everyone is welcome.
Photo opportunities and interviews with veterans who have been supported by the charity will be available.
Walk your own way
Participants can complete their own fundraising walk – of any distance and at a location of their choosing – between 9 and 20 December. Some participants opt to walk their children home from school, others walk between offices with colleagues, and there are those who undertake a walk in memory of someone special or between locations that mean something to them.
Stories from veterans who have been supported by Walking With The Wounded will be available, along with photographs.
Plus, the charity has announced world-renowned explorer, writer and photographer, Levison Wood, as ambassador for this year’s Walking Home For Christmas campaign.
Levison has written ten best-selling books and produced several critically acclaimed documentaries which have been aired around the globe. He has travelled and filmed in over one hundred countries worldwide, and his expeditions include walking the length of the river Nile, the Himalayas, across central America and circumnavigating the Arabian Peninsula. His most recent project followed the migration and conservation of elephants in Botswana.
Levison spent a number of years as a Regular Officer in the British Parachute Regiment, where he served in Afghanistan fighting against Taliban insurgents in Helmand and Kandahar. His military service has seen him deploy on operations and exercises on five continents.
He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the Explorers Club, Honorary Doctor at Staffordshire University and an ambassador of Unicef and a number of other charities. When not abroad Lev lives in London.
