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Testimonial from an individual currently being supported by the STFs Drug and Alcohol Dependency sessions:

“My name is Charles”

“I have been struggling with addiction and complicated Mental Health problems for much of my life. I used to live with the stigma of being an addict, a lot of people don’t see or understand the person behind the disease of addiction and I just needed someone like minded to confide in and who understands me. In a very short time I have experienced tremendous growth, knowledge and self confidence whilst working with Chris and the Standing Tall Foundation. He talks about issues with grace and compassion. He is just the person I had been looking for to help me with my recovery. I can confidently say that Chris is making a positive impact on my life. He and the Standing Tall Foundation have my highest respect for the support they are extending to me in my time of need.”

John F Tabern CEO of the STF said: “The Foundation is delighted to be able to help this individual with support via Chris. We pride ourselves on delivering support where it is needed, at ground level for people frequently overlooked by society.”

The Foundation is delighted to announce its partnership with La Vita Nuova, a Health and Wellbeing Consortium based in Eccleston, St. Helens. They are a clinical consortium offering a range of private clinical services which include Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, Podiatry/ Chiropody and Aesthetics services, however they have plans to grow their portfolio of services, with phases two and three opening in the summer, offering a wider range of clinic services such as General Surgery, Dental Cosmetics and Women’s Health clinics. Their aim in the future is to work alongside local NHS bodies to help improve healthcare within the local St Helens community.

Both Nicola Sung and Kerrie Mitchell (Managing Directors at LVN) have a strong passion to help the people of St. Helens, as do the rest of the consortium members and staff. Therefore they are extremely pleased to be supporting The Standing Tall Foundation. Over the next few weeks they have committed to helping the STF raise both money and awareness.

Speaking about the new partnership Nicky commented: “As our husbands serve in a range of public service forces and given that many of our friends and family have been affected by mental health challenges, we feel that we are able to reach out to the circles that we frequent and ask for heart felt donations for this cause. We wish The Standing Tall Foundation the very best of luck over the coming months and following the meetings we have had with the Team recently, we are more than certain that they will not fail to achieve their goals!”

Andy Reid MBE speaking about the new Partnership said: “Its fantastic that the Foundation has secured this opportunity to work with Nicky and her team at La Vita Nuova, we will be working closely with them on a number of initiatives as we move forward.”

The STF was delighted to run its innovative Goals After Pandemic (GAP) programme for a cohort of Willowbrook volunteers last week. The initiative was well received and we were delighted with the all round positive feedback. The GAP Project focuses on mental health, well-being, social interaction and goal setting in the wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic and seeks to provide support to members of the community, who may have faced the challenges of isolation or other factors brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic and perhaps now face the daunting prospect of re-entering the work environment or facing the prospect of looking for a new career or job.

Ian Turnbull – Volunteer Engagement Lead for Willowbrook said: “just to say a huge thank you to Phil in particular for delivering the GAP course to our volunteers last week. The feedback has been excellent from all the volunteers and hopefully this is the start of a great partnership between Willowbrook and Standing Tall.”

The one day programme was delivered by Phil Parr who is the STFs lead for mental health counselling: “it was a very enjoyable thing to do, but more importantly I feel it delivered a meaningful and helpful day to those who attended.”

Some feedback from attendees:

• Extremely useful, lots of helpful information learned, good self help techniques. Presented superbly.
• Tutor was excellent and the information delivered in an easy to understand manner. Well planned and well lead.
• Mindfulness demonstration was excellent.
• Phil was very open, friendly and knowledgeable.
• Very interesting and stimulating course. Will be recommending to others.
• Very relaxed and well run course with the right mixture of talking and participation.
• As you know a whole day of training can be overwhelming however the time just flew by as the subject was so interesting and most importantly for me without jargon. The timings on each session was just right to allow us to let the information sink in. When this pandemic is over there will be so many people impacted by it and hopefully I can use your training to help others.

The STF are delighted with this feedback and plan to run further day courses, for which the Foundation has secured some grant funding. If your organisation would like to hear more about this innovative day course, get in touch.

The STF recognised and prioritised from the start that support for individuals suffering the blight of drug and alcohol dependency would be a part of its portfolio of programmes to help with this most debilitating of mental health illnesses. The consequences of this scourge of modern society are nothing short of devastating and potentially fatal. Working hard for months to get the Foundation set up and helping many individuals along the way, the STF is proud of what it has achieved in a short time; however it is pleased to reveal that three weeks ago it launched its support programme in relation to drug and alcohol dependency and that it is proceeding well, with clients signing up to be mentored through a 12 Step programme designed to help change lives for the better.

Delivery of this successful and proven format is by the Foundations own Chris Nicholson, who is committed to sharing the methodology to as many people in need as possible. In keeping with the STFs ethos, Chris draws on his own lived experience in making solid connections with the individuals he supports.

Andy Reid MBE commented: ‘We couldn’t be prouder of the way Chris has stepped up and driven this programme for the Foundation. Like myself, he uses his own life experiences to make the support he is delivering relevant. Bonds of trust are not forged easily, but when individuals in need see that the help they are receiving is from someone who knows where they are, then trust is not only established, but is sustainable.’

Chris Nicholson (pictured) added: ‘I’m very proud to be part of Andy’s Foundation and of the opportunity it is affording me to pass on what was so freely given to me. It is something I am very passionate about doing and am committed to.’

If you know of someone or indeed you are in of support yourself please contact us for further information.

When we at the Foundation started to think about what events might be within our scope, we weren’t really thinking of climbing Kilimanjaro. That was until we got talking to Stuart Holmes of Elite FX, whose incredible enthusiasm has given us the confidence to mount this incredible expedition with forty other hardy souls. Stuart is now very much part of the Foundation family, pitching in with all manner of matters relating to the progression of the Standing Tall Foundation. Not only has he given so much of his time freely, we are delighted to say that he has now made his company a Foundation Partner.

Andy Reid MBE said of the partnership:

‘It’s been fantastic working with Stuart for the last few months on our plans for Kilimanjaro and I am thrilled that Elite FX have made this commitment to the Standing Tall Foundation, moving forward.’

Stuart Holmes – CEO of Elite FX said:

‘Elite FX’s focus is on providing a service for elite sportspeople, businesses and sporting bodies who have overseas income from revenue, salary or sponsorship deals and need to repatriate that income to different countries all around the world. I have over 18 year’s extensive experience in finance and foreign exchange, but started Elite with my late wife Nicki in 2019.’

He added further:

‘When I met Andy Reid it was clear that we had incredible shared values when it came too tackling mental health challenges both in ex-servicemen and in the wider society and we have committed to working together to effect change in those areas moving forward under the Standing Tall Foundation.’

The CoseyHomes Group has become a Foundation Partner.

Andy Reid MBE said of it:

‘I’m absolutely delighted to welcome Mike, Peter and their staff on this journey with us, all the more so, because they’re a local well respected company. The Foundation is proud of its St Helens roots and what it hopes to achieve for our communities, CoseyHomes involvement is a huge boost to aims.’

The Coseyhomes Group incorporates:

CoseyHomes – Chartered Surveyors
CoseyRentals – Lettings & Property Management
CoseyProperties – Property Development & Construction

Across its three divisions it now employs more than 60 staff members – the majority of which are based here in St Helens.

Peter Outten of CoseyRentals said:

‘I personally first met Andy Reid over 10 years ago whilst he was viewing potential investment properties. Since then we have met and spoke with Andy at many networking, community and charitable events throughout St Helens. We’ve also been lucky enough to be in attendance during a few of Andy’s guest speaker appearances and have always been touched and motivated by his story and determination – especially as he is a local lad, as am I.’

Peter added:

‘We were delighted to see the birth of The Standing Tall Foundation and knew that this would be a project that we would very much like to be a part of. After speaking with both Andy and John it was apparent that we had similar objectives, especially relating to our great town St Helens and the benefits to local people within our community. We are looking forward to contributing our time, effort and thoughts towards the foundation.’

Mike Cosy

Emma Willis manufactures and retails men’s clothing, specialising in bespoke and ready to wear shirts, with a shop in Jermyn Street and factory and HQ in Gloucester.

Speaking to the Foundation Emma said:

“In 2009 I set up Style for Soldiers, a charity to support injured and transitioning service personnel, with smart, well-fitting clothing and reunion events. Our Style for Soldiers Christmas party is the largest reunion for injured personnel in the country. I met Andy Reid MBE at Headley Court Military Rehabilitation Hospital which I visited regularly from 2009, to measure the patients for a bespoke shirt as a gift.”

Emma was deeply moved and shocked by the number of casualties returning from the conflict in Afghanistan and talked of the servicemen, women and medical staff she met there:

“They astounded me with their courage, care for each other and selflessness but I have to say Andy was one of the most astounding. Despite his unimaginable challenges he radiated strength and spirit and offered to help the charity in any way, in order to support his fellow injured veterans, by motivational speaking at any event. I took him at his word and a few months later he was on the stage at The Cavalry and Guards Club at our first Christmas party for beneficiaries and potential supporters giving the most brilliant and very funny speech!”

Emma says of Andy Reid MBE:

“His charisma, humour and strength of character, telling his extraordinary story of survival and resilience, has helped to give hope and strength to so many of the veterans we have supported as well as highlighted to hundreds in the civilian world the courage and sacrifice of our Forces.”

Marks and Spencer:

“Marks & Spencer donated over 250 suits to Style for Soldiers and having met Andy at the London Fashion week event and we were asked to invite him to speak to the entire London sales force and give the end of year staff prizes. The room of hundreds of M&S staff were without doubt changed from that day, Andy ‘blew them away’ as our military friends say!”

Emma comments on Andy, his work and the family man:

“I have the utmost admiration for Andy, we have worked together on so many veteran care matters and events and he would be my first port of call for advice on Style for Soldiers. His wisdom, kindness and selflessness are evident in all he does, including being a wonderful husband to Claire and father to William and Scarlet. I look forward to supporting The Standing Tall Foundation in the future, confident that where Andy’s energy, thought and care is directed will be of the greatest benefit to others.”

Ged Mason OBE, Morson Group CEO, has become a patron of the Standing Tall Foundation, the charitable organisation set up by Morson ambassador and ex-forces veteran Andy Reid MBE to support vulnerable young people and veterans in local communities.

Andy established the Standing Tall Foundation based on his own ‘lived experience’. While proud to have served in the armed forces in the 1st Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, he also believes that the societal factors and personal reasons that lead young people to join the armed forces are not always healthy ones.

There are potentially damaging consequences of carrying personal issues into service only to have them compounded by traumatic events experienced whilst on active duty. Consequently, Andy has spent the last several years working to offer mental health support and veterans support.

The inspiration for the Foundation came through helping Alex Kemp, another solider from Andy’s battalion. Alex was first on the scene when Andy stepped on an IED (improvised explosive device) in Afghanistan. Providing care for him in the crucial first minutes after the explosion, Alex helped save Andy’s life.

Several years ago, Alex found himself suffering from PTSD and homeless. With the assistance of Morson Group and Step Forward Homes, Andy helped provide support, work and accommodation for Alex, turning his life around.

This intervention was a contributory factor which led to the eventual formation of the Standing Tall Foundation, as Andy saw at close quarters the level of need and the inability of traditional larger charitable institutions to respond.

Set up to consolidate his charitable activities, the Standing Tall Foundation’s overarching aim is to support vulnerable young people and veterans in local communities. It works to achieve this objective by delivering funded programmes, designed to improve, enhance and help individuals across a broad spectrum of needs. In order to future proof the charity, Andy has looked to enlist patrons to help with key financial support as the charity grows in scope and reach.

Andy Reid MBE said:

“There has never been a greater need in modern times for support organisations, particularly due to the effects of the pandemic. Ged has become a very good friend and role model to me since I commenced working for Morson Group as a brand ambassador. It was therefore an easy choice when I started to consider who might be a potential patron for my foundation. In effect the decision made itself. I believe Ged’s involvement can only push the Foundation on to greater things, opening contacts and opportunities which might otherwise be unobtainable. This will enable us to help more people and work with greater reach. The Standing Tall Foundation board and I are delighted to have Ged on board as a patron.”

Ged Mason OBE said:

“When I first met Andy several years ago, I saw a man who embodied bravery, courage, respect, integrity and selfless commitment to helping others. I could think of nobody more suited to the role of ambassador to the Morson Group and Andy has been active in not only helping our teams recruit ex-forces veterans into civilian careers but has also taken part in our charity activity. I’m incredibly proud to be supporting the Standing Tall Foundation and I look forward to seeing Andy make it expand so he can do what he does so well – helping vulnerable people.”

Written by James Kenealey

Andy Reid is a determined character.

His resolute recovery from the devastating wounds he got when he stood on an improvised explosive device has, I’m sure, reinforced that trait.

Talking with him about his story though, it is clear that he has always had a tenacious attitude to whatever life throws at him.

The first real test of his mettle presented itself when he was very young.

“I’ve always dealt with adversity all my life,” he told me. “As a five year old, I was in a car accident. I broke my leg in three places. I struggled through school myself. Then I had the challenge of being turned away from the army because of my weight and having to work hard to achieve that goal of getting in the army. The injury was just another challenge: What now in the life of Andy Reid? I think I’ve always had that mindset of working hard to get where I want to be.”

He didn’t know it, but Andy’s early life would serve as good training for dealing with the aftermath of what happened in Afghanistan.

His mother lost her leg in that car crash during his childhood.

“I had a big insight into what it’s like to be an amputee. My mum just brought me and my three sisters up. We lived in a three-storey Victorian house with no stair-lift or wet room or nothing. I thought I’m supposed to be a big tough soldier and my mum brought us up, so I had better just get on with it.”

So Andy did exactly that.

After just two weeks in a British hospital, he made his first trip home to St Helens.

Within a month of the explosion, the corporal was able to meet up with members of his patrol again.

Since then, the triple amputee has set about thanking the charities that helped him through a variety of fundraising adventures.

Whether it’s a 400-mile bike ride, skydiving from a plane or kayaking to London, Andy doesn’t let up.

He’s been so prolific, most members of the Granada Reports team have met him at least once.

I first spoke to him in August 2010 as he was about to set off on a 600-mile trike ride.

“It’s mainly just to show the general public that if you have been injured you can carry on,” he told me at the time.

He had only just learned how to walk using his prosthetic legs.

Yet something told me there would be no stopping him.

Three years later, when we next met, he was abseiling 200ft down The Big One in Blackpool using just one arm.

It total, he’s raised at least £200,000 for armed forces charities and helped countless people to think positively by sharing his story about overcoming adversity.

His voluntary work earned Andy a trip to Buckingham Palace which prompted the father-of-two to ponder how he could make even more of a difference.

“Being from a town from St Helens with the highest suicide rate for men in the country, a lot of deprived areas, I thought I’ve got this voice now. Being awarded the MBE last year gives me a bit of status people listen to what I’ve got to say. I thought its about time I did something for my own town, my own community and the north west in general.”

So Andy has set up the Standing Tall Foundation, a community interest company, to further his charitable aims.

He originally planned to launch the organisation in September with the support of local businesses but the coronavirus pandemic made the need more urgent.

Leon House, a private mental health clinic he helped open in Manchester last year, suggested providing free mental health treatment for NHS and care workers on the front line.

So Andy launched the foundation early to take advantage of the offer, understanding the psychological pressures all too well.

Like many, he admits this year has taken its toll.

Covid restrictions emptied his diary of public speaking dates – events he considers therapeutic.

“Talking about the journey I’ve been on, having lost friends and been injured myself, helps me download it out of my mind and helps me deal with it. So in this current situation I’ve struggled myself. I’ve spoken to a therapist myself because I’ve not been able to tell my story. So I’d really encourage anybody who’s struggling with their mental health to just speak to somebody about it.”

Andy plans big things for 2021.

His foundation will continue its work giving laptops to the increasing number of pupils who need technology to learn away from school.

Its Wellbeing In The Woods programme will lead youngsters, vulnerable people, care leavers and veterans into a natural environment.

They will learn skills like shelter building and no doubt a well-stoked campfire will give them a forum to talk.

He will be aiming to reach new heights too – but I am sworn to secrecy about that for now.

If, as is likely, you want to consign 2020 to the bottom drawer of history, Andy’s stories, plans and sheer optimism provide hope.

There is a way to overcome the most difficult of challenges.

Take it from someone who knows.

“Everyone has gone through this pandemic together. Everyone’s feeling anxiety, depressed, a bit down about it. We’re all in the same situation so we can all speak to each other about it. That’s the most important thing to do.”

Originally published on the ITV.com website
Credit: ITV Granada/Andy Bonner