Mick Downworth Fund
Donation protected
Many people across the northeast and even the country knew Mick. Some knew him from his Army days and served with him during his 23 years as a Combat Medic, in places from Bosnia to Basra, Northern Ireland to Germany, and across the UK. Joining at 16, the Army gave him a home and a career where he could do what he did best - look after people.
After he left the Army, Mick worked in a couple of different places before coming home once more, finding a role as a Housing Officer with Gateshead Council with a focus on working with veterans. Gateshead soon found out that they had hired a revolutionary. The Armed Forces Outreach Service grew from his vision, helping thousands of veterans across the northeast with everything from housing to employment, financial support, mental health, and drug and alcohol addiction.
Away from work, Mick was heavily active in the world of rowing, with clubs at Durham, then Gatehead, and latterly Ebchester as a coach and again as a visionary, seeing what could be better and making it happen through finding funding, bringing people together or even building the boats. Away from rowing, he loved working with wood, music, tending his garden, and sitting with his cat.
Mick loved his children utterly. Due to a family breakdown, he had not seen them since the summer of 2018 but he thought about them every single day. They were his first thought on waking and his last thought at night. He hoped that as the years passed, he would one day see them again.
His years in the Army had taken their toll on his mental health, with depression, anxiety, and PTSD being part of every day. The loss of his children magnified this beyond measure. Mick and his partner Clare lived together in Northumberland. He will be missed every single day by Clare, his sister Andrea, his nephew Freddie and niece Scarlett, Clare's son.
Funds raised through this page will be shared with Forces and mental health charities, which is what he would have wished.
After he left the Army, Mick worked in a couple of different places before coming home once more, finding a role as a Housing Officer with Gateshead Council with a focus on working with veterans. Gateshead soon found out that they had hired a revolutionary. The Armed Forces Outreach Service grew from his vision, helping thousands of veterans across the northeast with everything from housing to employment, financial support, mental health, and drug and alcohol addiction.
Away from work, Mick was heavily active in the world of rowing, with clubs at Durham, then Gatehead, and latterly Ebchester as a coach and again as a visionary, seeing what could be better and making it happen through finding funding, bringing people together or even building the boats. Away from rowing, he loved working with wood, music, tending his garden, and sitting with his cat.
Mick loved his children utterly. Due to a family breakdown, he had not seen them since the summer of 2018 but he thought about them every single day. They were his first thought on waking and his last thought at night. He hoped that as the years passed, he would one day see them again.
His years in the Army had taken their toll on his mental health, with depression, anxiety, and PTSD being part of every day. The loss of his children magnified this beyond measure. Mick and his partner Clare lived together in Northumberland. He will be missed every single day by Clare, his sister Andrea, his nephew Freddie and niece Scarlett, Clare's son.
Funds raised through this page will be shared with Forces and mental health charities, which is what he would have wished.
Organizer and beneficiary
Andrew Waterhouse
Organizer
Andrew Waterhouse
Beneficiary
