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Stories of veteran service and sacrifice straight from the people driving today’s most important veterans causes and veterans organizations around the world. The show shines a spotlight on their inspiring projects making a real difference for veterans and their families, and along the way we'll hear the stories that drive them to do their best every day as they work to support veterans and their memory.
00:00:06:01 - 00:00:26:21
Speaker 1
Hey, it's Matthew Cudmore and welcome to Story Behind the Stone, a show where we talk service, sacrifice and story. Today we're heading across the Atlantic to Belfast, Northern Ireland, where we speak with Jason Gillard, Army veteran and the driving force behind Veterans Awards Ireland, a Korean initiative that shining a light on veterans contributions and expanding across the island of Ireland.
00:00:26:23 - 00:00:47:17
Speaker 1
From Belfast to Dublin, Jason is helping veterans step out of the shadows and into the spotlight with awards that celebrate community and continued service. We'll hear how Jason launched the awards in Northern Ireland, how they're expanding to the Republic of Ireland, and how his veterans platform connect through service is building bridges between veterans and businesses, all with trust at the heart of it.
00:00:47:19 - 00:00:52:19
Speaker 1
Jason, thanks for sharing more about your mission with us today and to our listeners, thanks for tuning in.
00:00:58:20 - 00:01:00:06
Speaker 1
Hello and welcome to a story about an estate
00:01:00:06 - 00:01:02:06
Speaker 1
on a show where we talk service, sacrifice and story.
00:01:02:06 - 00:01:09:03
Speaker 1
Connecting with the individuals, changing the way the world recognizes veterans and working in veterans causes in commemoration.
00:01:09:03 - 00:01:14:20
Speaker 1
My name is Matthew Cudmore. I'm joined by my guest today, Jason Gillard Managing director, Veterans Awards,
00:01:14:20 - 00:01:15:09
Speaker 1
Northern
00:01:15:09 - 00:01:17:06
Speaker 1
Ireland. Jay - so great to have you on the show.
00:01:17:07 - 00:01:20:14
Speaker 2
It's an absolute pleasure to be on your show and to speak to your listeners.
00:01:20:14 - 00:01:28:17
Speaker 1
Jay would love to just give some context for our listeners. What are the awards all about? What keeps you going and working in this space to recognize veterans?
00:01:28:17 - 00:01:53:23
Speaker 2
So the Veteran Awards Island is an award scheme that recognizes all the attributes that veterans bring to society. After their service. So I come about I was a soldier in the British Army for 13 years in the Royal Signals, served in Northern Ireland, Afghanistan, Iraq, and after the time I got out, I went into protection, in Iraq and Afghan.
00:01:53:23 - 00:02:11:15
Speaker 2
I didn't have enough of it first time, so I thought I'd go back. Because the pay was a bit better. And I ran a business in Northern Ireland. I met a local, could probably you listen to listen out. And those with keen ears, we go. He doesn't sound to Northern Irish, but my mouth from your name.
00:02:11:21 - 00:02:32:03
Speaker 2
So that's how you say it over there. My mum was from Northern Ireland. My dad was a soldier here. And I met a local beauty. And I stole her, as we Englishmen do. So I settled down in Northern Ireland once I got out of the army. And I started my own business, and there was awards in England, Scotland and Wales.
00:02:32:03 - 00:02:55:19
Speaker 2
And I was engaging with them, wanting to know why Northern Ireland didn't have the awards. Now, maybe some of your listeners know a bit about the history of Northern Ireland, or is people call it the Troubles. I can go into that if we, when we have a chat a bit further. But it's very, can be very tentative on, on veterans orientated things in Northern Ireland.
00:02:55:19 - 00:03:19:14
Speaker 2
So I ended up taking the mantle on and launching the veteran awards because I wanted to promote and change the narrative in Northern Ireland on how veterans are perceived. Okay. And showing that the positivity they can bring to society through business, community fundraising. So I launched the Northern Ireland Veteran Awards four years ago, to start engaging with businesses.
00:03:19:20 - 00:03:26:20
Speaker 2
And that's where the seed started, which was going to grow into hopefully a huge oak, which we can go on to, in this podcast.
00:03:26:23 - 00:03:33:08
Speaker 1
It's hugely inspiring. J tell me a little bit about, what you're hearing veterans that are recognized as you've been underway.
00:03:33:08 - 00:04:02:00
Speaker 2
It's been amazing to bring veterans out of their shells in Northern Ireland. Because it it's hard to describe people was like to be a veteran because of the because of the nuances, the troubles of 40 years of only nearly sort of a civil war in, in the UK, which is a Western country, it'd be like imagine, Alaska, you know, everywhere, half the population, you know, hating each other, the other half of the population hating each other.
00:04:02:02 - 00:04:32:14
Speaker 2
But it's still part of the US and A, and, you know, and it's having it's having terrorist acts, all the time. So veterans have become very sore on us about the security. So they didn't actually come out and be very public. They would hide who they were. They wouldn't tell. I remember when I came over as a child, I had the cover story of what my dad did when I because my mum was from me, I would have to say, my dad said, if anyone ever told you, asked you what your dad did, you had to tell him that he worked in a bank.
00:04:32:14 - 00:04:57:12
Speaker 2
There was a huge narrative in Northern Ireland that you could. It was the it's a huge population. There's 150,000 veterans out of 1.8 million population, yet they are the most silent people you've ever met. It's the silent community. Because of the troubles. I wanted to change that. And by doing that was to publicly say, it's okay to say you're a veteran now, you're not going to be targeted.
00:04:57:12 - 00:05:18:04
Speaker 2
You're not there's not going to be repercussions for that. And that's where the words really blossom out. And I got to it was amazing. The first awards, I had veterans looking round in a public space with a medals on being recognized for what they do in society, and it was honestly life changing for some people, which was amazing.
00:05:18:05 - 00:05:33:05
Speaker 2
I got to deliver this. All right. Obviously everyone wants the accolades, but I actually what I get to do by promoting veterans and sharing their stories and making it normalization, I'll use that's a key word, normalizing, coming out as a veteran in Northern.
00:05:33:05 - 00:05:47:12
Speaker 1
Ireland, I'm all the way over here in Canada. We have our parades, we have our anniversaries, we have our events full suit, jacket, and medals, everything. You know, I can imagine the energy in the room was really something else. Did your family attend? What are they saying about your involvement?
00:05:47:12 - 00:06:06:20
Speaker 2
I had my dad there and he is the most miserable bugger I've ever met in your life. All he did was moan. Moan. I thought, be brilliant. Bringing my dad. Because he was. He served in Northern Ireland in the 70s when 70s and 80s when it was, you know, really, is the most intense time to be alive in Northern Ireland.
00:06:07:02 - 00:06:26:19
Speaker 2
My wife, when I said I was doing this because she's been brought up all her life in northern Ireland, I come in and out of it because obviously my dad, my mum, so my wife grew up in that and she was very tentative. So the business I launch was a military bootcamp because I was a physical training instructor in the Army, and she was like, okay, you can't do that.
00:06:26:21 - 00:06:40:13
Speaker 2
You just can't do it. I went, why? Because no one's done it, ever done it. And I went, yeah, but you can't just keep saying you can't do that because no one else has done it. So I did that. And then when I did the awards, I said, I'm coming home - she went: “Jay, but you're going to be very public.”
00:06:40:13 - 00:06:59:05
Speaker 2
And I went: “Cecily, if no one does it and says, actually, it's okay to say you're a veteran, it's okay to approach and tell people the narrative will never change. Also, if you want someone's perception of you to change, you have to go and give them something and a reason to do it.” My wife and family were really?
00:06:59:07 - 00:07:21:05
Speaker 2
Are you sure? Because they thought I was putting their lives at risk. That's that's how long indoctrinated they are to now were four years on, I had zero people of anyone who I'd say is of an area that I'd be concerned about moaning or you name it. I've done. I ran the second ever veteran awards in a hotel called Europa Hotel.
00:07:21:05 - 00:07:43:09
Speaker 2
You get your listeners to, to research this hotel. It was known as the most bombed hotel in Europe at one point. So Northern Ireland, this is the hotel that that bomb hoax at bombs. So I ran the Veteran Awards, second one at that hotel on a Wednesday night. Medals on the had the uniform from the local army brigade.
00:07:43:11 - 00:07:58:04
Speaker 2
And there was people look around going, we're in the middle of Belfast with medals on in the most bombed hotel. And, I had a brilliant, guest called the Chinook Chick. You should look her up. Liz McConaghy, the. She's the longest serving,
00:07:58:04 - 00:08:04:21
Speaker 2
female in the Chinook crews in Afghanistan. She did ten tours of Afghan amazing guest speaker.
00:08:04:21 - 00:08:21:20
Speaker 2
And that was the thing she said in a speech was, O-m-g, I'm in the most bombed hotel in Europe. As a veteran, I never thought this would happen. So. So to answer your question, they were very tentative when I come to this day. But yeah, it was it's turned out okay since.
00:08:21:20 - 00:08:34:00
Speaker 1
I'm just astounded at what you've been able to turn around and the short of time people attending the words, what are they attending for? I mean, I know that they're attending to recognize fellow veterans. Is there more to it for them?
00:08:34:00 - 00:09:00:16
Speaker 2
So what they get from it is we have a recognition, that promotes what they're doing to be more open. It's also a networking opportunity, because what I'm getting to do, which will go into, is I launched a business off the back of this was I was trying to normalize businesses, engaging with the veteran community. And like I say, be normal, because you will get businesses that'll be very pro soldiers here.
00:09:00:16 - 00:09:33:01
Speaker 2
This is it's it's polar opposites. There's one that we love, what the veterans do, one, we detest them. So it's easy to get those businesses. But I want to get the businesses that have gone well. We'd like to engage with veterans, but we've never known how to. So with the veterans come, they also get to meet people they might not have met and seen for for years, get to spend time in an environment they never thought they could do, like we said, you said, you know, in Canada, even in England, you know, sitting in in a, in a pub in, in, in England after Remembrance Day medals on.
00:09:33:03 - 00:09:55:01
Speaker 2
That's that's fine. That happens. But here you really unless you went back to a place is called the Royal British Legion which are clubs that you know veterans. Oh you couldn't generally go in public and just sit there and all your medals of all your mates served having a drink, reminiscing, but they get that opportunity in a public, you know, place because we do it in our big hotel.
00:09:55:03 - 00:10:15:17
Speaker 2
So they get out of that networking camaraderie, a recognition, and it's, it's pounding that is pounding that narrative. We're changing it. We've got to change it. We've got to change you. You've got to keep beating that drum. But change in the beat. Because what I found was for too long was Einstein said it best. You do the same thing.
00:10:15:17 - 00:10:37:03
Speaker 2
Getting it expecting different outcome is insanity. So if you want a different outcome, you need to change what you're doing. And that's very much where I look to men. Well, let's change what we're doing because that's not working. You know, if anything's going worse. So let's change the narrative. And honestly, like I like to think they get so much from it.
00:10:37:05 - 00:10:49:04
Speaker 2
Maybe if you ask them they might say something different. They just say Jay Jay, just makes us come along and buy a ticket, to an awards. But no, it's been it's been great seeing people's faces.
00:10:49:04 - 00:11:00:12
Speaker 2
One of the most amazing and things. And, the first ever award, I ran in Stormont Hotel, which is right opposite Stormont, which is the Parliament building in Northern Ireland.
00:11:00:14 - 00:11:35:17
Speaker 2
And we had a nominee called Bryan Phillips, unbelievable lad. Double amputee. He was in the Irish Guards, lost his legs in Afghanistan. Okay. And when I saw his name was called out and he stood up and he stood up, you know, he’s got prosthetics and the emotion. I turned to my wife and I said, that's why I've done this, honestly. When I saw his emotion, when I saw his face and tears, it was worth every penny to see him go and accept that award.
00:11:35:17 - 00:11:56:04
Speaker 2
And and I end up speaking to, a friend of hers. And he said, we were so worried all week whether he was going to win. And, and honestly, to see his face, you know, a double amputee getting up and accepting an award in Northern Ireland, how much it meant to him was unbelievable experience. And I can't I can't buy that.
00:11:56:04 - 00:11:57:08
Speaker 2
I can't buy that, you know,
00:11:57:08 - 00:12:18:17
Speaker 2
subsequently, if he listens to this, he's going to hear. So I try to organize a gift you could not buy for him. So I mentioned Liz McConaughey, the Chinook chick. She was in Afghanistan. There's a lot of the listeners have been veterans who understand what the the MERT is. Medical emergency response, teams.
00:12:18:19 - 00:12:40:18
Speaker 2
So they come on the Pedros is the American one. With the Blackhawks, we have the Chinooks. And she was in Afghanistan when he was there, but didn't pick him up. I had organized an awards last year for the crew that picked him up to surprise him on the awards night, and he couldn't make it. I was, devastated.
00:12:40:22 - 00:12:49:01
Speaker 2
I hadn't told him, but I was like, that's a gift. You cannot meet the people who come and picked you off the ground as a casualty and saved your life.
00:12:49:02 - 00:12:56:04
Speaker 1
Tell me a little bit about the awards categories. I imagine there's a variety, you know, you got over them, but I'd like to hear maybe about 1 or 2 that resonate with you.
00:12:56:04 - 00:13:06:19
Speaker 2
So the awards mirror the English, Scottish and Welsh awards. Okay. As most listeners are know, no UK is made up of four nations Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.
00:13:06:19 - 00:13:17:03
Speaker 2
After a while I wanted to make the awards individual one more unique to Northern Ireland. So last year I changed the Inspiration Award to the Channing Day Inspiration Award.
00:13:17:04 - 00:13:37:03
Speaker 2
Channing Day was one of the only, I think, two females from the British forces that died in Afghanistan. So she's such a well-known figure. I approached her mum and I wanted to make the the, the categories meaningful. So I approached her mum and said, look, can I ask? I would like to change the Inspiration Award to The Channing Day.
00:13:37:03 - 00:13:59:21
Speaker 2
Inspiration Award, because this girl had been a Northern Ireland footballer. She'd done, gymnastics. She represent the army at football. She was an inspirational soldier and I approached her mum and her mum said, anything that keeps my daughter's name alive, I back it, you know, you couldn't I, you know, still put it right. Rises my hairs on my arms.
00:13:59:22 - 00:14:16:11
Speaker 2
She present on the wall and wait. This I didn't realize on the night of the award was nearly a year that the day she was killed in Afghanistan. I didn't know that until literally a week before the awards. And her mum presented the award.
00:14:16:11 - 00:14:22:02
Speaker 2
And it was tingling to see. And the emotion and, you know, giving to.
00:14:22:03 - 00:14:40:05
Speaker 2
And she gave it to a bloke called Brian McKee, who is in a wheelchair, who helps veterans get support with, you know, they, applying for if they need to financial support. And he also hand makes blackthorn sticks. You ever seen a blackthorn stick?
00:14:40:07 - 00:14:41:20
Speaker 1
No, no I haven't.
00:14:41:22 - 00:15:10:00
Speaker 2
These are these are traditional Irish walking sticks. Okay. And he makes them and glosses them and spends hours upon hours. And he was just a he's an inspirational man and a perfect winner for the first ever one. And even this year we've got some amazing, nominees. We've got Andy Allen, who is now a politician in Northern Ireland who's a double amputee from Afghanistan as well.
00:15:10:00 - 00:15:36:14
Speaker 2
And he was, Royal Royal Irish Regiment. He's a we've got a lad called, Jason Miller who was a soldier in Northern Ireland and this year he had a seizure. And as he had a seizure, he smacked his head and went into a coma for six weeks. And then his wife is well known because he gives haircuts to the homeless, and he come out of his coma.
00:15:36:14 - 00:15:55:21
Speaker 2
And there have been some, like, 18,000 pounds raised in charity. And he gave it all for for him they raise. So money was raised for him, obviously his wife, he come out of the coma and give it all to charity. You know, I hadn't, hadn't been at work just, just some inspirational people. So that category is, you know, really amazing.
00:15:55:21 - 00:16:17:02
Speaker 2
But there's so many others. We have, veteran group of the year, Health and Wellbeing award, where organizations or veterans who are veterans have gone out and they go in and help people with their health. Community award the role models. Brilliant. One. There's so many good role models. Last year a lot of server was up for it and he didn't win it.
00:16:17:02 - 00:16:40:03
Speaker 2
And he was gutted and I serve him and, so it's so many positive news stories to show people that after the service, they go on to good things. And there are such a valuable member society, which then brought me on to why I launched my business, which we might get into, connect with service. But yeah, the inspiration, Channing Day Inspiration the Year award.
00:16:40:07 - 00:16:59:18
Speaker 2
I've actually just added two new categories this year. So when I was a kid at 13, I joined the Army Cadets and I could pretend to be a soldier up till May 18th. Brilliant. So I've added Cadet Instructor of the year because they mold so many future soldiers by myself. And fundraiser because there's lots of people that raise money for military charities.
00:16:59:20 - 00:17:10:16
Speaker 2
So it's nice to recognize, veterans who go on or even if it wasn't a veteran, someone who raises for a military charity. We want to recognize them. So so that's a taste of the categories we have.
00:17:10:16 - 00:17:16:15
Speaker 1
Can folks abroad tune in to the awards that are upcoming, by any chance? Do you have a live stream?
00:17:16:16 - 00:17:37:13
Speaker 2
Yes, I want to do that. The first year had BFBS which is British Broadcasting Forces Broadcasting Service. I should engage them because I'd like to do that live stream each category, which would be would be great to. No, that's er believe it or not, something like it increases next year's people attendance if they can see it.
00:17:37:15 - 00:17:41:02
Speaker 2
So not at the minute but it's something I would like to do.
00:17:41:08 - 00:17:49:10
Speaker 1
You've touched on it a couple of times. We haven't gone into any depth and I think it's really interesting how it's come about and why you're doing it, to talk to us about connect through service.
00:17:49:10 - 00:18:07:18
Speaker 2
So off the back of the awards in England, Scotland, Wales, there's loads of veteran recruitment companies probably have a similar there's probably something in Canada and Australia in in America. So there's loads of entities. But guess where none of them have touched or gone? Northern Ireland. So when I ran the first veteran awards and started businesses, I looked round.
00:18:07:18 - 00:18:42:20
Speaker 2
I went, oh no, no one is engage in to help business engage with the veteran community and the veteran community, engage with, business approaches, employees, people, if they put on a, a CV to a company here they are veteran at 50% of the time will lie on their CV. Okay. And what I mean by lie is they will write down that they worked as a civil servant instead of Her Majesty's armed forces, and they'll write, I was a team leader as opposed to I was a junior commander of of an infantry section.
00:18:43:01 - 00:19:07:23
Speaker 2
Okay, just an example, because they are worried that who they CV goes to could be connected to someone who might have been in the PIRA CIRA RIRA, just for everyone. Listen, PIRA is a provisional IRA. CIRAis a continuity IRA. RIRA is the real IRA. Now. All of these disbanded after the Good Friday Agreement in 1997. But there's still elements all connected.
00:19:07:23 - 00:19:32:10
Speaker 2
And, did they really disband stuff a lot? So that's another story. If another day. So people have a big trust issue with the veteran community where they give it. So why around the first ever networking events again in the Europa Hotel? Because I wanted to make, I had 20 businesses in a room to stand and in an open they said to veterans book and come and meet and engage or look at employment.
00:19:32:12 - 00:19:53:09
Speaker 2
Nina looked and went, well, I'm now made a position for myself as the trusted entity in Northern Ireland. I'm very public about being a veteran. I don't I bind that and I've got businesses engaging with me and I have veterans contacted me. So I then met my business partner, who's also an ex, soldier. He was a, in the Royal Irish.
00:19:53:09 - 00:20:20:12
Speaker 2
He was an officer. And then he joined the PSNI, which is the police service in Northern Ireland. So we said, well, he was talking about his business. He had loads of people coming through the door and always engage in businesses. And when we need to make something that allows businesses and veterans to be able to engage. But I didn't want to be a recruitment company, so we made connect through service, which is a bridge stroke filter.
00:20:20:14 - 00:20:45:04
Speaker 2
And the way it works is we get businesses to sign up to as one end. We get the veteran. And it's not just veterans, it's also police because police are targeted here massively. Ambulance and fire brigade. Now even though they haven't got that problem. We call everyone service. They served. They wore uniform and they've served and we put them together because they have a terrible after their service.
00:20:45:06 - 00:21:12:17
Speaker 2
They have a really poor, support network on their next career. So we have all them sign up. The businesses don't have a details. They come to us by a margin. We are now the the, employment version of the blue tick for X and the company signs up tours. Everyone knows they want to engage blue tick. So we then we then give them opportunities by they can give as we've got a job build it up.
00:21:12:19 - 00:21:33:17
Speaker 2
We then advertise it to a membership and they can then approach knowing it's come from us. They actually want their service and they can be far more honest now. We want to then move that into, Ireland, which is the south Republic of Ireland and then Scotland because it's now growing. But that's where CTS is come. And then the veteran wards sits under that because it makes sense.
00:21:33:17 - 00:22:03:13
Speaker 2
So that's what CTS come about with people looking at as a problem. Northern Ireland businesses want a pathway, but have never had a way to do it until we made this. And it's and hence why if anyone looks our website, it says dot trust hyphen KSAT.com. It's all about trust here. So if we're the trusted entity okay companies and and service leavers veterans can believe and it's such a main thing here.
00:22:03:18 - 00:22:21:18
Speaker 2
Trust, trust the person you're talking to is not going to obviously give you information away or or use it or do something. So why look at that is not a problem. I look at it as an opportunity because like I said, no one was doing it. I'll touch in Northern Ireland because there you go. Oh it can't be done.
00:22:21:20 - 00:22:50:22
Speaker 2
Whereas we need to show people the times have moved on. You can do that. You can be more open, you can come out, you can engage with companies and be proud. It's really weird because of the troubles and because of the darkness of what happened. You will find the most patriotic people in the United Kingdom are Northern Irish, yet they are inwardly a ashamed in a way to ever come out in a pub certain areas.
00:22:50:22 - 00:23:03:07
Speaker 2
It's really weird. On one hand, patriotic other hand. Don't want people to know they were in the forces. Be quiet about it. It's an oxymoron. It really is. But I want to help change that.
00:23:03:09 - 00:23:13:08
Speaker 1
I want to turn the lens to veterans and the value that they bring to these organizations that are that are looking to hire them. One of the strengths that veterans are bringing to to these roles, key.
00:23:13:08 - 00:23:40:18
Speaker 2
Thing is the key words here is transferable skills. Okay. And this is where companies are seeing the huge benefit. One thing I didn't realize now today is someone turn up on time is now a desirable and not actually expected standard, which you get with a veteran. You know, the fact is a veteran has been mucked around so much now, even though his work starts at 8:00, he probably turns up at six because someone told him I had to be that seven, and then someone set off six.
00:23:40:22 - 00:24:03:07
Speaker 2
So he turns up at six and actually it's to maybe eight, but that's just through, service of getting mucked around. But the transferable skills is key. The adaptability. We'll look at it this way. Most career people I find service people are driven to promote because of the nuances of service. So they have to deliver to get, promotion.
00:24:03:09 - 00:24:23:23
Speaker 2
So when they go in the workplace, then the natural now, not always, but naturally, for me, if I witness or I'm looking to go, wow, okay, what do I have to do? Because I need to be going up the ladder, and there is a drive that is so intrinsically instilled in you because of your time, in the forces that you aspire constantly because there's more than one rank.
00:24:23:23 - 00:24:49:23
Speaker 2
But I find the drive also our ability of we want it done yesterday, not in four weeks time. Also, we'll be given a job to do without the required skill, tools or anything and and still get the job done. But it's that adaptability that is, you know, you're so sort out of the, so what we find for companies is they're seeing the potential and then training the individual up.
00:24:50:04 - 00:25:12:16
Speaker 2
Whereas before was, well, have you got the qualifications now they're saying, well actually that bloke is we know will be team ethics. We can we can bring him in the team. He's not going to struggle in that. He's going to understand hierarchy. He's going to understand, you know, control and command. There's, instructions, delivery. One thing I think people don't realize.
00:25:12:16 - 00:25:35:12
Speaker 2
The armed forces, they're great salesmen. I was an instructor, a weapon instructor, physical training instructor. I was a first aid instructor. And most people we serve end up going to do qualifications instructed. So they have to present. Selling is presenting. It's all about the sales. But there's so many skill sets that veterans don't realize. But now businesses are seeing opportunity and it's all about that.
00:25:35:12 - 00:25:53:00
Speaker 2
Well we'll take him because we know we can. He can adapt and we'll train him up, and then we'll get someone who can run our systems, who can outperform. So they're really seeing the benefits. It massively. It's it's and Northern Ireland I had a meeting today with the head of G4S which is a huge security company.
00:25:53:02 - 00:26:22:17
Speaker 2
And he always talks about Northern Ireland. It’s the blue elephant in the room. And we are addressing the blue elephant by going, well, if Northern Ireland wants to prosper, to succeed, it needs to sort this huge problem out. Because like I said, there's about 800 to 1,000 veterans leaving the armed forces every year, coming back to Northern Ireland. So out of a population of 1.8 million, which is smaller than, quite a lot of cities in the US, you know, that's a big demographic of people.
00:26:22:21 - 00:26:29:02
Speaker 1
Just as we wrap up, how can folks support the awards? How can we follow you and support what you're doing over there?
00:26:29:02 - 00:26:47:20
Speaker 2
We are on social media Veterans Awards Ireland and the reason why it's called Veteran Awards Ireland, as you said and not Veteran Awards Northern Ireland is:I will be launching an awards in the Republic of Ireland, the Irish Veteran Awards, which is we always call it down South. So I wanted a site that covered both the Northern Ireland and the Irish Veteran Awards.
00:26:48:01 - 00:27:15:19
Speaker 2
So we're on X, and we're on Instagram and Facebook and, LinkedIn veteran Awards Ireland and then also connect through service. Is on all those platforms as well. How to support - believe it or not. I want to bring the veteran awards to the US of A - my colleague wants to do. He he's got plans to Canada, but I find it really, really surprising that us they don't have anything similar.
00:27:15:19 - 00:27:33:09
Speaker 2
But I want to do it state and I want to get charities because what we do I should mention is I raise for charities at each awards. So each award will on the night will raise money and I'll give it to to a veteran charity. If you would like to support come to the awards. We would love yous to come.
00:27:33:14 - 00:28:01:05
Speaker 2
Love yous, absolutely, to come -- and how we could help. This year's awards are on the 16th of October. And then next year's to be around the same time. But we're also going to be in 2027, launching the Irish Veteran Awards in Dublin. We'd love, love them. To get involved, message me, reach out. I would love, obviously, if American companies wanted to come over Northern Ireland is an amazing place to start, to get involved because it has foothold in the UK and a foothold in Europe.
00:28:01:07 - 00:28:22:23
Speaker 2
But, we would love people to attend. Come along, message me how to get involved if they would love the concept to come to their state in America, get in touch because we want to franchise it and give it so they may they can charities reap from from the awards. So watch this space. Get in contact with me Jason Gillard I'm on Facebook personally.
00:28:23:01 - 00:28:39:18
Speaker 2
And obviously we've mentioned all the, social media tags and our website, dot veteran Awards ireland.com and connect through service which is WWw dot trust hyphen CTS which is Charlie tango sierra dot com.
00:28:39:18 - 00:28:55:13
Speaker 1
Jay I can't thank you enough for coming on the show today sharing more about everything you're doing over there. It was absolutely brilliant to have you on the show. Really enjoyed the chat. It's, just fantastic to know you and to know what you're doing over there to to support your community. And thank you for coming on the show.
00:29:01:05 - 00:29:20:15
Speaker 1
Thanks so much for tuning in. Story. Behind the Stone is available on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, and on the Rise Across America Radio Network on iHeartRadio. Audacity and tune in to search for wreath. We air every Thursday at 10 a.m. eastern on the Red Cross Radio Network. Thank you for tuning in.