Paratrooper Ben Parkinson Hands Over Fighting Fund Cheques
03/11/2008
Last night 24-year-old Paratrooper Ben Parkinson from Doncaster attended a charity basketball event organised by law firm Irwin Mitchell to hand over cheques totalling £228,000 to charity after the government agreed to increase the level of compensation available to injured service personnel.
Ben, who was seriously injured when a mine exploded whilst he was on patrol in Helmand Province in Afghanistan, took centre stage to hand over the four cheques of £57,000 to the Royal Hospital for Neurodisability in Putney, the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA), the Royal British Legion and the British Limbless Ex-Service Men's Association (BLESMA) before cheering on the basketball teams.
Staff from Irwin Mitchell hosted and competed in the charity match against the Aspire Wheelchair Basketball team at the Aspire National Training Centre in Ealing, raising more than £4,600 for Aspire Basketball Team, the 3 Para Afghanistan Trust and Help for Heroes.
The Charity event, co-hosted by military catering and hospitality company Sodexo saw a two match spectacular where the Irwin Mitchell team of solicitors took on the 3 Para and Aspire teams.
Andrew Buckham from the Armed Forces team at Irwin Mitchell represented Ben, and organised the event. He said: “Although we did lose to the Aspire Basketball team, unsurprisingly, we managed to hold our own against the 3 Para’s which I think came as a bit of a shock to everyone.
"The evening was a resounding success with £4,631 being raised for the three charities on the night and the cheques, totalling £228,000, being handed over to a further four charities who help injured soldiers."
The money, raised by the general public through a legal fighting fund to help Ben’s family mount a judicial review, was donated to charity after the MoD agreed to increase the level compensation available to injured service personnel.
Andrew said: "We would like to thank everyone that came and supported the evening, making it a fantastic success. We are extremely pleased to be able to help these inspirational charities."