Help for Heroes at Halton House  

I have to confess that I’m not the biggest fan of balck tie dos, but last Friday evening was important. Aylesbury RFC had organised a reception at Halton House (the Rothschild mansion that ow serves as the officers’ mess for RAF Halton) in aid of Help for Heroes, the service charity that raises funds to support injured service men and women. For me, the most memorable part of the evening was listening to two RAF corporals talk about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan, and about what had happened to comrades who had been injured – how young men who were physically fit and active suddenly had to come to terms with wounds that would cripple and disfigure them for the rest of their lives. Overcoming the physical trauma of such injuries must be challenge enough, but we must never forget the mental stress that these men struggle with too. I’m glad that the new Defence...