SHOWREVIEW 67
From the Front Line to a Locksmith with Pilgrim Bandits
»»‘ PILGRIM BANDITS’, A charity formed by Ex-Special Forces personnel, to assist all injured ex or serving military personnel in their recovery by offer empathy not sympathy, was the nominated charity of Lockex 2016, when it debuted at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry in September.
The Locksmith Journal spoke to the West Midlands area coordinator, Terry Arnett, who said,“ We are extremely pleased to have been invited to this exhibition. Events like this allow us not only to forge better links with the business community, but also allows us to educate and show the wider community, what remarkable things can be achieved by our injured armed forces.”
At the time of the exhibition, the charity was celebrating another successful challenging expedition, to the icy waters of Greenland. Pilgrim Bandits provides training, working towards qualifications for those injured interested in pursuing a career in the leisure sector or to simply train for expeditions like this one.
Mick Smith, explains how he came to qualify as a locksmith and join Pilgrim Bandits,“ I served 25 years in the Coldstream Guards from 1988 to 2013, taking pride in serving my country and experiencing the world.
“ At the age of 18 I was sent to Cyprus for the best part of 2 years and served in most conflicts the UK armed forces was involved in, with the exception of Afghanistan as this was taken out of my control.
“ On the 12th June 2008, I was riding a military motorcycle for the trooping the colour for Her Majesty The Queen’ s birthday parade, when I was involved in an accident where the rear wheel locked up and I was thrown from the machine, landing on my right knee and left shoulder, banging my head on the tarmac. I tried to stand but was in such unbelievable pain that I passed out.
“ I was taken to St. Thomas Hospital London, where I was put into an induced coma as and woke up in a hospital bed 10 days and 6 operations later. However, 12 months and a further 5 operations on, I was at a checkup with my surgeon on 28th June 2009 when I was told that they had tried everything they could but the best option I had was to amputate my right leg from above the knee.
“ After my right leg was amputated I was sent to the Defence Military Rehabilitation Complex, Headley Court, in Epsom where I first met Ben Parkinson MBE and Peter Price, who was offering a 3-day City & Guilds recognised locksmith course, which I took him up on.
“ I completed the course and passed with no problems. I had a thought that I could do this as my full time job and even possibly run my own business, so I asked friends and family to let me do any locksmith work on their property to gain more confidence in the work. I have since completed an
‘ We are extremely pleased to have been invited to this exhibition’ advanced locksmith course with 1st Call Locksmith Training in Birmingham.
“ Having now gained some confidence and the right qualifications needed, the only worry is I now have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder( PTSD), which causes problems in crowded areas and when meeting strangers. This could be a problem for a self-employed locksmith, however, I eventually asked for help in overcoming these obstacles from a service charity and after just over 24 months of going to see them I decided I wanted to also help others, so I worked with a civilian charity for limbless persons and I still help them when I can.
“ I had a chance last year to meet up with Pilgrim Bandits and soon realised this was what I needed, to be a part of this amazing charity and help others and be a part of the next big charity in the making. I am amazed by these guys and the things they have done.
“ I have been fully qualified as a locksmith for a little over 6 years and, although it’ s been a very quiet year this year due to operations and illness, both physical and mental, I really enjoy my job and enjoy working with the charity.”
www. pilgrimbandits. org SML Locksmiths Ltd, 01276 492066, 07881972089
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL. CO. UK | SEP / OCT 2016