RAF Association offers listening ear for Armed Forces Day
Today (Friday 23 June) celebrities, volunteers and serving RAF personnel joined staff and branch members from the RAF Association to check on the welfare of thousands of members of the RAF community.
As part of its national outreach campaign to mark Armed Forces Day, the Association made 5,000 calls to members of the RAF community all over the world to check in on them and provide any support they may need.
The rising cost of living has caused huge anxiety and worry amongst the RAF community. At the beginning of 2023, three times as many people contacted the Association needing emergency financial assistance and support with loneliness and isolation than before the crisis began.
Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton KCB FREng knows first-hand how a simple phone call can make all the difference. He said: “As I know from my own experiences as an RAF Association Connections for Life volunteer, there are many vulnerable people in our RAF veteran community who need help.
“It was wonderful to see the Association’s staff and volunteers, including many serving personnel and defence partners, marking Armed Forces Day in a very practical way by calling thousands of people to check on their wellbeing and offer support if needed. I hope that through this national campaign, more people will now be aware that their RAF community is there to help should they need it.”
BBC One Saturday Kitchen presenter and RAF Association Ambassador, Matt Tebbutt, who made outreach calls from his home, said: “It was a pleasure to join the RAF Association in its outreach campaign this year. Sometimes a simple phone call can make all the difference, and through these phone calls, we’ve been able to check on the welfare of so many more people in the RAF community who might need that extra support.”
The RAF Association’s Director of Member, Branch and Wellbeing, Rory O’Connor, said: “We can never underestimate the power of a phone call and the difference it can make for someone who is struggling and needs our help. Our volunteers have been speaking to people who are dealing with bereavement, life-changing injuries or financial difficulties. Thanks to the calls from our volunteers, they are now receiving the help and support they need and deserve. That’s why this campaign is so important.”
Contact Information:
Caroline Jacobi
Senior PR Officer
RAF Association
07867591057
caroline.jacobi@rafa.org.uk
