Former British sailor strides out to help visually-impaired servicemen

A FORMER Royal Navy sailor plans to walk 100km – or 62 miles – to raise money for vision-impaired ex-servicemen. Joe Suttill, 31, plans to tackle the challenge in June for Blind Veterans UK. 

The charity, based in Ovingdean, supports a family friend of Mr Suttill’s and he said he “could not think of a better cause”. He added: “It’s good to know that if I were to lose my sight a few years down the line, Blind Veterans UK would be there to support me.” 

Mr Suttill served in the Royal Navy from 2000 to 2004, and was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. He and his girlfriend live near Blind Veterans UK and on a recent visit bought a special rocking horse, made by a blind veteran, for their eight-week-old son. 

The 100km walk is Blind Veterans UK’s biggest annual fundraiser and takes walkers from south London, along the banks of the Thames, through countryside paths in Surrey, Sussex and the North and South Downs to the charity’s centre in Ovingdean. 

It will start in Putney on June 6. Registration is open at £50 per participant for the 50km or £75 for the 100km. Teams taking part in the relay have a registration fee of £120. The charity, which supports more than 4,000 veterans, needs 500 people to take part. 

Visit blindveterans.org.uk/100k for more information, or to support Mr Suttill visit www.justgiving.com/Joe-Suttill.