A unique cask beer now available throughout the Marston’s pub estate has been created by three injured veterans in partnership with Marston’s to raise funds for the Help for Heroes charity.
It is brewed at the Burton Upon Trent based brewery by Innovations Brewer, Genevieve Upton with three ex-Servicemen Pete Dunning, Dan ‘Baz’ Whittingham and Simon Brown who were all injured in action whilst serving for the British Forces. All three are members of the Help for Heroes’ Band of Brothers which offers lifelong support to Service men and women.
Pete, Baz and Simon worked on the beer’s recipe at the brewery in 2014 with Genevieve and believe they have come up with one that will appeal to ale drinkers as well as traditional lager fans who are now switching to lighter brews but with more flavour.
On a return visit to the brewery to see his finished beer, Simon Brown said: “We wanted a modern-tasting ale and Pete, Baz and I all had a definite idea of how we wanted the beer to taste. Genevieve was brilliant in capturing that for us.
“We hope pub goers will try a beer when they go to the bar and raise a glass to our wounded veterans. If they enjoy the beer and fancy adding a donation to Help for Heroes, even better! ”
The pump clip for Help for Heroes beer, which has a strength of 4.2% ABV, bears the slogan, “Created by Heroes; Brewed by Marston’s; Enjoyed by Everyone.”
Richard Westwood, Managing Director of Marston’s Beer Company said: “We are enormously proud to be associated with Help for Heroes. Everyone involved in this project has been bowled over by the fantastic work that they do with injured servicemen. We hope that the beer will raise awareness for the work done by the charity as well as raising some money through beer sales and donations.”
6 pence from the sale of each pint will go to Help for Heroes which supports injured members of the Armed Forces and their families and participating pubs will be displaying a collection tin, a display box with Help for Heroes wrist bands and a banner.
ENDS
Photographs show:
- Simon Brown, Help for Heroes veteran & Genevieve Upton, Marston’s Brewer
- Other images depict Pete Dunning, Dan ‘Baz’ Whittingham and Simon Brown as labelled.
For more information contact:
- Lisa Harlow for Marston’s on 07917 757860 or email lisa@lisaharlow.co.uk
- Vicki Johnson for Help for Heroes on 07807 304333 / 01725 514276 or email vicki.johnson@helpforheroes.org.uk
Notes to editors:
ABOUT HELP FOR HEROES
Help for Heroes offers comprehensive support to those who have suffered life-changing injuries and illnesses while serving our country. This support is provided through grants direct to our Heroes and their families, grants to other charities and through four Help for Heroes Recovery Centres across the UK. A study in September 2014 by Help for Heroes and the Royal College of Psychiatrists found that 75,000 men and women may need long term support following our involvement in the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Simon Brown
From Morley in West Yorkshire Simon Brown joined the British Army in 1997.
He has been deployed in Kosovo and on three tours in Iraq.
In 2006 in Iraq the crew Si commanded was called in to rescue a stranded vehicle with a crew of six on board. He successfully led the mission but as Simon’s vehicle was pulling away he was shot in the face by a sniper. Simon’s palate had collapsed and he couldn’t breathe so he put his thumb in his mouth to hold it up and keep his airway open all the way back to the base, where he collapsed.
His colleagues rushed him for emergency treatment at nearby Basra Palace, where he was given a tracheotomy which saved his life. He was then airlifted to the base hospital where he had the first of many operations to rebuild his face. A day later he was transferred back home for further treatment and rehabilitation at Selly Oak Hospital, Birmingham. Waking up from a coma 17 days later, Simon learnt that, as well as losing his left eye, he now only had 20% vision in his right eye, he had lost both cheek bones, his nasal cartilage, two teeth and a chunk of jaw bone.
After 15 operations accumulating over 100 hours of surgery over the last 6 years, he has now managed to cope with the changes and move on.
Si started this process by volunteering with disadvantaged young people using his own experience to help motivate and inspire them. Simon has always been determined to help others through his experiences and is hugely generous with his time as an H4H Ambassador. He says that opportunity to feel useful again gave him the confidence to push his own boundaries to move forward.
Simon has undertaken two H4H challenges. After completing a 100k trek in the heat of the Sahara Desert last year, Simon tackled our recent Costa Rica Jungle Challenge. Some of his achievements include speaking at the GQ Man of the Year awards, speaking to the England rugby team before the 2012 six nations and carrying the Olympic torch. Si now works full time with Blind Veterans UK which he sees as a start to a new phase of his life and embraces his new challenges with positivity.