TESTIMONIALS
"How Valley Veterans have helped me..."
“I have received various help to do with my mental and physical conditions, some of these include, a mobility scooter, blue badge, attendance allowance, and applied for a war pension. Paul has put all this together for me, in our weekly meetings, this breakfast club gets me out of the house, I meet friends that I had served with, and Pauls horses have helped me to relax and connect to nature. My wife has noticed a change."
— WG 1st Batallion 12 Yrs
"I have suffered from PTSD for over 10 years, I shied away from people, I was introduced to Paul Bromwell who invited me to attend his small holding in Gelli, working in the environment, with Paul and the horses helped me to integrate back into the community. He has helped lots of Veterans in his time, and continues to do so."
— Fire Service
“Since meeting Paul, he has changed my life, he has put me on the right track with the RBL, helped to fix things in my house and led me through the minefield of support with my PTSD and other physical disabilities. Meeting Veterans with the same problems has created a strong bond, with humour and plenty of banter and I now attend social events, that I wouldn’t have done before.”
— WG 1st Batallion
“Paul has helped me very much, I do some gardening, and go to the breakfast club. Thanks to Paul it gets me out of the house, otherwise I would be stuck in all day.“
— 1st Batallion Wales Borders
“Since attending the group, I have met new and old friends, and although I have been out of the service for many years, it has helped me relax and put things into perspective. By attending the small holding, it gives you an extra sense of belonging, and worth, muck and work has never hurt anyone and helps focus the mind on the project in hand.”
— RN 12 yrs
“The group has helped me and my son who suffers with PTSD and myself with various injuries. By meeting other people also gets us motivated to get out and help with the daily running of the smallholding we find it really helpful.”
— Royal Welch Fusiliers
“I am the local Police Officer, I served in the J.L.R.R.A. I know the group really well and it is good to see someone like Paul taking the time to rally around these people and bring them together, and to offer them support, and re-assurance within the community. I think given time the group with grow, and have a huge presence. South Wales Police support this Group."
— Local Police Officer
"Before joining Valley Veterans, I knew very few people in the area, and was suffering badly from depression and isolation. Since joining I have made good friends with the same background as me, and they have gone out of their way to help me and make me feel welcome, the sense of camaraderie is like I haven’t felt since I left the military. The amount of good work this organisation does in the community, between the allotment, and breakfast club is immeasurable, and its plans to expand and help is even more admirable. I look forward to being a member and helping others, as they have helped me, in the bright future that lays ahead."
— RAF 12 yrs
"I founded Valley Veterans almost 15 years ago, I identified a need for support, as I struggled for many many years with PTSD and still do. I have built a network of agencies that can support veterans with their needs, be it employment, housing, or just general support and friendship. I am humbled by the words of others, and shows that my vision was indeed needed in the Valleys. In a bizarre way, helping others, has indeed helped myself, it has given me a purpose in life. We are expanding the allotment, along with the equine therapy which I have always used, and now with an aquaponics way of growing food and flowers, we have partners on board, that I never thought possible even 2 years ago, we are an organisation that is going from strength to strength. I am proud of the contribution that each and every veteran makes every single day, from working with the horses, to growing their own food, to the laughter that being together brings. The future is bright, and we look forward to welcoming new members, whether you are still serving (which few of our members are), or whether you are a veteran, our door is always open."
— Paul Bromwell, Welsh Guard & CEO