Former Sergeant Alexandra McClellan, 38, from Ffynon Gynydd was medically discharged from her job as an Army Nurse when she suffered a stroke aged just 30.  This Saturday, the 38 year old from Ffynon Gynnydd is launching Help for Heroes’ #40ThousandStrong campaign in Wrexham, while racking up the miles on a static bike as part of a 10,000 mile cycling challenge.

 

On Saturday 15th February between 1000 and 1400, Help for Heroes is hosting an installation featuring part of the charity’s 40,000 Strong exhibition at Ty Pawb in Wrexham, which is a cultural and community centre in the heart of the town.

4,000 mini-figures will be on display in Ty Pawb, each one representing a man or woman who was prepared to put their life on the line for us in the Army, Navy or Royal Air Force, and whose career has been cut short due to illness or injury.

As well as seeing the installation for themselves, the public will be able to find out about Help for Heroes’ Community Recovery support, which is delivered across Wales and Hereford, where and when it is needed, to improve the lives of men and women who are living with life-changing conditions, including physical and mental health challenges, as a result of their service.

They can meet Help for Heroes Community Recovery team:

– a clinical liaison – who is a qualified nurse who served himself in the Army and supported men and women injured in active service on the front line

– a Band of Brothers fellowship coordinator, a veteran himself, who delivers family-friendly events and community hubs which bring wounded injured and sick veterans and service personnel and their families together to enjoy that sense of camaraderie once more

– a Sports Recovery Coordinator, who will be heading out to support Team UK at this year’s Invictus Games, and delivers health and wellbeing support from wheelchair rugby sessions, to sleep hygiene and nutrition, plus and a member of the National Sports Recovery Team

– a 1-2-1 key worker based in North Wales, who has also served and brings that experience when he helps our veterans as they transition into civilian life with a range of welfare and holistic support.

They will also have the opportunity to cheer on our amazing veteran, 38 year old Alexandra McClellan, who’s taking on a breath-taking challenge to raise funds for Help for Heroes, the Royal British Legion and Velindre Cancer Centre, who looked after her family member when Allie was only 17 years old.

Allie is cycling the distance from her home in Ffynnon Gynydd, Powys, to Sydney where she took part in the Invictus Games in 2018, winning a silver medal as part of the relay team. She’s bringing her static bike and will be racking up the miles as she aims to hit her 10,645 mile target in the coming months.

Former Army Sergeant, Allie, served in the Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps from 2003 – 2014.  Her career highlights were operational tours, where she worked in multinational units looking after injured and sick personnel.

In March 2011, aged just 30, Allie experienced a stroke, which eventually led to her being medically discharged from the Army in 2014.  This experience affected her wellbeing hugely.

Allie says she felt let down by the process. She thought she was going for a grading medical board, about her ongoing work, and it was only when the meeting started that she realised she was being discharged.  Over the following months, Allie says the case was mismanaged and she fought against the decision to medically discharge her, with the decision actually overturned a couple of years later and Allie offered the opportunity to rejoin if she wished. This isn’t something she has chosen to do, in part because of how she was treated and the impact on her wellbeing of the whole process.

She says: “It did affect me. I left and felt completely worthless and incapable, and like I had completely lost myself and my identity as I must have been missing something for them to need to discharge me, it was massively confusing. I withdrew, and would still say that I am still very much affected by all the negativity that was put on me at that time.

I felt ashamed that I wasn’t good enough but did not know why this was or how to change it, and this impacted on how I acted – after the med board I was allocated an absolutely amazing support officer, and to this day have never been able to tell her the impact she had on me and how grateful I am because I just cut myself off and basically became pretty sad about the whole thing.”

Allie said: “Since the day my stroke happened, I have never fitted anyone’s ‘criteria’. Over time I have become quite lonely, insular and disconnected with everyday emotion and motivation.”

She made the brave decision to embrace Help for Heroes support though the charity’s Sports Recovery programme and trialled for the Sydney Invictus Games in 2018.

Allie worked hard to overcome the pressures of starting training again and thrived in the inclusive atmosphere of the Invictus Games. She says, “Sitting on that rowing machine at an Invictus training camp, I spent the first day trying not to cry as it was so overwhelming. But I felt passion and such a desire to push myself and beat my own goals that has been missing for so long. The Invictus environment is one where you feel everyone is included – it feels liberating.

“I am learning how to build up my physical strength and paid attention to how the camps made me feel mentally strong to help achieve the training. I aim to continue focusing on a challenge in the hope that I feel and look more like the old me again.”

Since her return from Sydney, and the high of winning a silver medal in the relay competition, Allie has decided to set herself a new challenge – cycling 10,645 miles on a static bike, to raise funds and awareness of three charities close to her heart.

She says, “The three charities that I am doing this for do are all helping people to live, to get the most out of life and to feel supported and to not feel like they just exist, away in the shadows. They offer assistance and guidance, something that is needed so much when the rug is pulled out from beneath your feet and life alters for everyone. They have all helped me in some way, and just knowing that they are there if needed itself helps immensely, and I would like for them to be able to continue their work to support others and their families in whatever challenges they may be facing.”

 

The 40 Thousand Strong installation was launched in Manchester’s Arndale centre in October 2019 and attended by seven veterans representing wounded, injured and sick men and women from the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force.

The seven individuals each had a mini-figure created to represent themselves and their illness or injury, whether visible or hidden.

The 40,000 Strong campaign seeks to raise awareness of the number of wounded, Injured and sick men and women who have been medically discharged from the armed forces over the last 20 years – almost 40,000 individuals whose careers have been cut short, many of whom will need support to deal with life-changing conditions.

Help for Heroes surveyed their beneficiaries about the medical discharge process and found that many of them reported having a negative experience. The charity is calling on the government and the Ministry of Defence to ensure the process is improved to help the men and women who put their lives on the line for us successfully transition into civilian life.

 

In exchange for a suggested donation of £5, members of the public can own their own 40,000 Strong figure and support Help for Heroes’ work to improve the lives of our wounded, injured and sick through a range of residential, sports, holistic, one to one and fellowship support, aimed at enabling them to live happy, healthy lives with purpose once more.

 

The installation arrived in Wales in November and was displayed in Caerphilly and at Parc Y Scarlets, raising awareness of Help for Heroes Community Recovery work, which is delivered across Wales & Hereford.