Veterans in Crisis was established in 2018 by Ger Fowler, a Southwick lad who served in the the Light Infantry. His vision is to make Sunderland the best place in the United Kingdom for armed forces veterans and their families to thrive.
There are around 2,500 veterans in the Borough of Sunderland, and many have mental health, alcohol and drug problems, are homeless, and socially isolated. They have around 6,000 carers and family members. We offer a wide range of support aimed at helping veterans and their families to recover their health and wellbeing.
During the Covid-19 pandemic our support has been more important than ever; veterans and their families who were already socially isolated and vulnerable have been under much greater pressure.
Our response has been immediate: we established a food bank, make sure that anyone who is on their own is buddied up with another veteran, and call everyone frequently to make sure that they are OK. We run a full programme of socially distanced activities which means that everyone who wants to has something enjoyable and stretching to do each day.
Housing homeless veterans, and providing everything that they need to live comfortably, is a primary function of ours. Thanks to the generosity of local people, we are gifted furniture, white goods and everything else that people need. We already distribute this to veterans in need, and this campaign is about trying to make that service better. Please read on….
