Veteran sets up Walk, Talk and Brew in Annandale

A KINGS Own Scottish Borderers veteran — originally from Gretna — has set up a wellbeing event in Annandale and Eskdale for people living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Jim Kenny, who now lives in Penrith, was inspired to volunteer as a troop leader for Who Dares Cares after recently taking part in a fundraiser by Scottish KOSB veterans in aid of the charity.

The team raised over £12,000 by canoeing from

Peebles to Berwick.

In the last three years Jim has attended three funerals of KOSB veterans. This prompted him to take action, believing his friends could have been helped.

Jim said: “I thought – I have got to do something about this. (Veterans can sometimes be) too proud to ask for help. I thought of starting the Walk, Talk and Brew.

“I would love people to come and join me.

“There’s a lot of people out there who are screaming for help.”

He added: “The actual walk is a very easy 45 minutes to an hour with no pressure, and whilst walking we talk and then we finish, sit down and enjoy a brew.

“I have been looking for an excuse to get back to my home town. I have got family in Gretna but I don’t drop in as often as I would want.”

Jim, who joined the army straight after leaving Annan Academy in 1979, held the first walk in Gretna last Sunday and was over the moon as attendance reached double figures.

Encouraging more people to come along, he said: “It’s not just for veterans. It’s for all blue light services and any person who has ever cared for a loved one.”

Thanks are expressed to Sam Carlyle from Annan who donated coffee, tea and biscuits; and the Cornish Bakery at Caledonia Park for the pastries.

The next two Walk, Talk and Brew events are set to take place in Gretna on Sunday September 28 and October 12.

• To find out more you can email Jim at [email protected]>@sky.com