Chris Last and Martin Ash MBE have 50 years service in the Royal Marines between them - 22 and 28 respectively - and since completing their military service they have both become key voluntary components of The Not Forgotten Association’s mission to combat isolation and loneliness amongst the Armed Forces community. And over the course of the next month, they will both be coming to Mallorca with two 18-strong groups of veterans from all three services and their partners as part of a programme which has now been running in association with the Bulletin, Son Amar and the local community for the past 14 years.
Palma Marathon
The two groups will be staying at a finca in the north east of the island, courtesy of a British resident who has supported the association on the island from the very start. While the first group will enjoy a respite break, the second has a bit more of a challenge on its plate. Four members, including Chris, will be running the Palma Marathon while the rest will act as the support team, cheering the three former servicemen and one woman on. This time, however, Rosie Thompson MBE, who has been Head of Events since 1998 and during that time has met many thousands of veterans, will not be running. Having already completed 36 marathons to raise awareness and funds for the charity, she is sitting this one out due to injury. Chris first became aware of the NFA and got involved as a volunteer while helping at the command training centre.
Something to focus on
“I got involved helping some of the guys prepare for the Three Peaks Challenge and then Rosie threw me a challenge - to climb Mount Toubkal, the highest peak in Morocco. In 2017 I had undergone routine knee surgery. There were some complications afterwards and a period when I really was not in a very good place. I reached out to the NFA and they came back with the challenge and it was just what I needed; it’s the kind of goal we all need. It was a physical challenge and it was great to have a target, a purpose, something to focus on and I completed that in 2018. And one of the great things on the climb was there was another marine, who I didn’t know, had undergone the same surgery on the same day as me. We got to know each other and became friends for life, and there’s been no looking back. That’s what the NFA, obviously with the great help of Rosie, is all about,” said Chris, who with Martin has run a number of New York marathons and taken up many other challenges.
Martin, who completed a number of tours of Afghanistan and served in Iraq, was a PTI physical training instructor in the Marines. One of his main tasks was helping with the rehabilitation of fellow wounded or injured Marines. “Apart from the obvious blast and shot wounds, there’s a lot of wear and tear on the body when you are in theatre. There are all kinds of injuries, so when it came to my time to be operated on, I had a good idea of where I was coming from. But that said, it’s never easy coming out the other side,” Martin said.
Care for partners
“That is where the NFA’s attention to veterans’ partners is not only unique for service charities and associations, it is also vitally important because the partners are the real heroes. They suffer in silence and don’t receive the care and attention they deserve from the forces. “It’s difficult for me to speak on behalf of other regiments, but in the Marines we have the Marines Charity and that is excellent, first class, but we still need the likes of the NFA. When I see and meet other former servicemen and women who have turned to the NFA for help, it’s clear that associations like this have a crucial role to play in caring for veterans and their partners in so many ways,” he said.
Colour Sergeant Martin, while serving at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines, Lympstone, was awarded the MBE for his work with injured marines and his contributions to service charities in 2014. He played in a key role in overseeing the opening of Parker Hall, a state-of-the-art gymnasium at Lympstone in 2012.
Martin first started to work with the NFA in 2011 while 40 Commando were in Afghanistan. He took marines who had suffered injuries and sent them on NFA trips and activities. Being a ski instructor, getting veterans onto the piste has been very much his thing. But, as Chris said, there is much more to the NFA. The association’s motto is ‘From Comradeship To Challenge’.
Rosie said: “This illustrates the variety and breadth of the support we offer. Some of our activities provide a physical challenge and the opportunity to develop self-confidence, others are of a more social nature aimed at fostering camaraderie and friendship; many offer both challenge and comradeship. Each of our events and activities is intended to restore confidence, enhance wellbeing, boost morale and improve the chances of the serviceman or woman and their family enjoying a normal, if not better, life. Apart from the away trips and activity breaks abroad, we also organise roadshows with parties and shows for those veterans who perhaps are unable to travel or miss out on the trips which are always in huge demand, especially those to Mallorca where were are always invited to Son Amar thanks to the support of Margaret Whittaker OBE.”
Mallorca trips
Both Martin and Chris agree. “We’ve been on the Mallorca trips before and the first day is always a bit quiet because many of the vets have never met before and are from different services. But give them a day and they let their guard down and, before you know it, they are friends for life. It’s about comradeship, being with like-minded people, be they the vets or their partners.
"They all share a common bond and they understand what each other has been through; that’s very difficult to find in a normal environment on civvy street. They feel safe, secure, comfortable, looked after, cared for and, what is vitally important, is that it helps them all remember that they have not been forgotten. That their armed service has not been in vain and that millions of people, the general public at large, appreciate their sacrifice and are willing to help by making donations or facilities available, even in Mallorca where the local community rallies round,” they said. But the former Marines admitted that the armed forces are facing a major challenge today. “It’s about numbers, getting recruits,” said Martin. “People have changed, as generations do, but the armed forces are still extremely relevant with everything that’s going on around the world. But yes, it’s a struggle to get people into the forces,” he added.
Crucial time right now
“I would recommend a career in the forces to any young person. It transformed my life. It offers so many opportunities to travel, to learn, to train, and you establish life long friendships. And looking around the world right now, it’s a crucial time to be investing in the armed forces,” Chris said.
Quick fire round.
Chris:
What is you favourite food or dish?
Pizza and pasta
What is you favourite film?
Goodfellas
What is you favourite book?
Fabulous Four
What is you favourite drink?
Moretti
Person you most admire?
Rosie
What is the first thing you do in the morning?
Cup of tea
What is the best career advice you’ve ever been given?
Personal development, consistency, small steps
What was your childhood dream?
Cowboy
What are you afraid of?
Failure
Favourite music or musician?
90s Hip Hop
Martin:
What is you favourite food or dish?
Curry
What is you favourite film?
Full Metal Jacket (always makes me giggle)
What is you favourite book?
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
What is you favourite drink?
A gin and tonic with Rosie
Person you most admire?
Rosie
What is the first thing you do in the morning?
Cup of tea
What is the best career advice you’ve ever been given?
Turn a negative into a positive. When I decided to join the Marines so many people told me I’d never make it. I did and I’m still here today.
What was your childhood dream?
Sportsman
What are you afraid of?
Change (according to his wife)
Favourite music or musician?
Indie - Arctic Monkeys for example