A VETERAN who served in the Royal Engineers for eight years has played his role as a "live" mannequin in a campaign to support an armed forces cause.
John Murphy, from Golborne, went on tours in Germany and Afghanistan before being discharged in 2017 after suffering a back injury.
As part of Help for Heroes' "40,000 Strong" campaign, the Debenhams shop in Manchester allowed the charity to take over two of its windows.
Shoppers were given a surprise after seeing a team of "live" mannequins in its window display, including five veterans, family members and fashion and lifestyle figures.
The men were modelling items from Debenhams’ new range of five Help for Heroes t-shirts.
The women were wearing corduroy dresses made by the retailer for the charity.
All profits from sales of the clothes will go to Help for Heroes.
John, 36, said: “This campaign is really important to highlight the issues with medical discharge – the silence can be deafening when you leave.
"When I was medically discharged it was like a sheer drop and I received very little help.
"I was just told to go off and see how I got on.
"It took the Ministry of Defence a very long time to acknowledge what was wrong with me.”
John and his wife Laura
John transferred his technical skills to secure a new job as an assistant design manager.
He has subsequently been employed as a design co-ordinator.
His wife, financial administrator Laura, said: “Adjusting from the military to civilian life is hard but it’s just as hard for the families too.
"When someone joins the army they are broken down as a person and rebuilt as a soldier.
"But when they leave there seems to be no reversal of the process.
"John was just left to cope with a new life as a civilian. It was really hard.
“Help for Heroes has really been there for us both – for me it’s having that support whenever I need it and for John it’s made him aware of the opportunities available to him.”
Laura Murphy, Craig Monaghan and Charley Tysler in the window
Shoppers take pictures of the live mannequins
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Laura also appeared in the Debenhams shop window.
She added: “I was really nervous at first but it was really fun.
"And the dress is amazing and really comfy. What a great day.”
As part of the campaign, 40,000 model soldiers are also on display in the Arndale Centre in Manchester.
This represents the number of people from the armed forces who have been medically discharged in the past 20 years.
CEO at Help for Heroes, Mel Waters, said: “We are very grateful to Debenhams for the great support of their staff and customers since 2014 in raising such a fantastic amount.
"We are delighted with the way in which they have embraced our 40,000 strong campaign and it’s been great to see our live mannequins really turning heads.”
For more information about the Help for Heroes "40,000 Strong" campaign, visit www.helpforheroes.org.uk/40thousandstrong/.
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