Hi, my name is Cliff. I am a local (Sunbury) businessman and a veteran. When I left the army and moved to Lower Sunbury, I was delighted to find a memorial plaque to a local hero, Major Charles Greene; both a fighter pilot in WW1 and commander of the Local Defence Volunteers (LDF) or Home Guard in WW2. Charles died in 1944 and was fondly remembered by his family, with the plaque on a bench in the walled garden. Sadly the bench needed to be repaired and despite the best efforts of the local council, they could not find any family members still resident in the area. My original idea was just to replace the bench, but the space had been reallocated to another memorial. I approached the very helpful council members responsible, who allocated me an alternative spot on the Kings Lawn, on the banks of the River Thames. Actually, this is highly appropriate given that Charles and his unit would have had responsibility for defending the river banks and the locks from a feared German invasion. It was then that my thoughts turned to my brothers and sisters serving, and veterans for whom, "conflict continues long after the gunfire and bugles have fallen silent". Of course veterans are not alone in suffering from Complex PTSD, so I include our brothers and sisters from the Blue Light Services, and indeed the community at large. Now I am certainly no expert in PTSD, but I do know many men and women who suffer with it every day, and I know the warning signs. Loneliness, and a feeling of helplessness, heavy drinking, family break up, homelessness and worse. We can't solve every problem but "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step". So the plan, based loosely on the 'friendship benches' in schools, is to provide a Buddy Bench, initially in Sunbury and in honour of Charlie Greene, but eventually across our county and our nation. The Buddy Benches, each dedicated to a local hero, would provide a place for people to sit and just talk. Of course this will be a place recognised by local communities, and hopefully when you see a person seated on the bench, and assuming you have both the time and the inclination, you can offer the comfort of conversation. I volunteer locally for 2 military charities, Combat Stress who work hard helping veterans suffering with their mental health, and Pilgrim Bandits helping Veterans and Blue Light services who have been wounded or fallen ill, to make the best of what they have for as long as they can and to embark on adventures and enjoy the comradeship they miss.

So how can you help? Well, this Go Fund Me page will pay for initial benches as well as maintenance and development of the scheme, including spreading the campaign nationwide. You can also spread the word, join the Facebook Group and occasionally and perhaps most importantly, take the time to talk to someone. Talking can save lives. I hope to have Charlie's Buddy Bench in place by April 2026, so please help. Finally, I would welcome any sponsorship from local businesses and clubs to assist this project.