THE deaths of six soldiers in Afghanistan last March, three of them from Huddersfield, moved the nation.
Such was the lasting effect of those losses that supporting soldiers and their families was very much on the minds of New Mill Male Voice Choir when its members began to look at organising its next big fund-raising concert.
It is why the choir asked the Band of the Yorkshire Regiment to be its guests at its Huddersfield Town Hall Concert in October.
The British Legion and the Army Veterans Association provided programme sellers and the concert was a great success raising over £5,000 for the Regiment Benevolent Trust.
The Trust supports enlisted and former soldiers who experience difficult times when they leave the service.
A cheque was presented to Colonel O’Kelly, regimental secretary of the Yorkshire Regiment, and Captain Gary Clegg at a short ceremony at New Mill Club.
Colonel O’Kelly said that he was overwhelmed to receive such a large donation, which he knew would be used wisely.
He said that it had been a very difficult year for the Yorkshire Regiment with the well-publicised losses of life in Afghanistan, but also through many injuries.
Col O’Kelly said soldiers involved in action were often subject to post-traumatic stress which could have a major impact on their lives.
The Falklands War had shown that it could take as long as 15 years after the conflict for the condition to manifest itself, and the Trust works to help those afflicted.
He said that this magnitude of donation can go a long way in supporting families who suffer after service to the country.
