The RAF Base in High Wycombe will choose the name of a puppy training to be a veteran support dog after raising £5k for a national charity.
The RAF-operated thrift shop in High Wycombe has raised £5,000 for the charity Heroes for Hounds in the last two years, an achievement that will give the base the chance to name a new puppy recruit taken on by the charity.
Hounds for Heroes train puppies for up to two years to enable them to provide special assistance and support to former armed forces members.
The pups provide especially vital help to those who have lost their arms, by carrying items such as keys around in their mouths, and those who are paralysed, by moving their owners' limbs around.
Founder and Vice-Chairman of Hounds for Heroes, Allen Parton, accepted the cheque at an event held at RAF High Wycombe on March 15.
Mr Parton is a war veteran himself, having spent five years at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court after sustaining life-changing injuries.
He founded the Hounds for Heroes charity 12 years ago after learning firsthand the value of man's best friend in the recovery journey.
Mr Parton credits Endal, his first dog, for bringing him back to his family and giving him a better quality of life.
He said: "Dogs can take away a lot of the pain and anger that an injured person may feel. It is about ability, not disability. It's about finding solutions, not problems."
Endal was awarded the Dickin medal, also known as the animal's Victoria Cross, for saving his owner's life after a hit-and-run accident.
Readers can click here to learn more about the charity or to make a donation.
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