PROVIDING HOPE

A new clothing campaign by Defence Force veteran charity ONE aims to raise awareness and funds for their very worthy cause e ‘Hope Couture’ range re ects the harsh realities some soldiers face a er they leave the Defence Forces, with the designs drawing not just on Army apparel, but also on the locations where former soldiers have been found sleeping rough across the city. e clothing comes with a QR code visible through the window of the charity shop that members of the public can scan to donate to the campaign. All proceeds go towards providing safe housing for homeless veterans.

Anew clothing-based charity appeal to help Dublin’s homeless veterans has been launched by the Irish Defence Forces.

Óglaigh Naisiúnta na hÉireann (ONE), a charity that assists veterans following their service to the country, unveiled their special camou age clothing range on Gra on Street in February.

Cormac Kirwan, Chief Executive of ONE, said: “ e organisation helps veterans to get back on their feet by o ering accommodation, mental health support, employment assistance, addiction counselling and peer support. We hope that this collection of unique camou age streetwear will raise awareness around Irish veterans who are experiencing homelessness, and give them the encouragement and resources they need to overcome its challenges.”

Design

e clothing range was commissioned by Irish designer Orla Langan, and features several distinctive patterns inspired by places around Dublin city including Russell Street Bridge, Blessington Street Park, Phibsboro, Luke Street and the Royal Canal.

Fittingly, three veterans who were supported by the ONE charity a er leaving the Defence Forces – Martin Clarke, Eddie Culshaw and Brendan Monaghan - are playing a central role in the campaign by agreeing to tell their stories and model the clothing range.

ONE has helped more than 1,000 veterans out of homelessness since its inception in 1951, and since 1994 has been providing 18,000 beds annually through its residential homes in Dublin, Athlone, Cobh and Letterkenny. It is planning to open a new facility in Cork later this year. e charity also has a network of 38 branches nationwide, as well as 15 support centres.

Speaking about the campaign, designer Orla Langan said: “It was an absolute pleasure and a privilege to collaborate on the ONE ‘Hope Couture’ project and to meet the veterans featured in the (promotional) lm. I really enjoyed designing and making the garments for the veterans with the QR code integrated into the camou age print, knowing its purpose and the critical part it plays in the campaign.

“I got the opportunity to work with a talented and dedicated team, and I am very proud of what we achieved together.”

Martin Clarke

Veteran Martin Clarke, 56, from Cabra, joined the Defence Forces as an infantry soldier in 1985 when he was just 17, and was stationed at Collins Barracks in Dublin.

In a career spanning 27 years, he served overseas with the 63rd Infantry Battalion in 1988, the 69th Infantry Battalion in 1991, and the 74th infantry Battalion during the winter period between November 1993 and April 1994 as part of UN peacekeeping missions in South Lebanon.

In 2012, he was set to travel to Chad on another peacekeeping mission but got prostate cancer, and le the Defence Forces, but he also moved to the US a er marrying an American woman. When he got divorced, he returned to Ireland and found himself seeking help from ONE.

He told a national newspaper: “I returned from America and I really had nothing. It was a frightening time. I wasn’t working and my mental health su ered. I don’t want to say I became institutionalised, but it’s all I ever knew and it was hard when it all came to an end. I really missed it, and I still do today. ere was great camaraderie and it was a real way of life for so many. When that stops, you don’t know what to be doing.

“ONE was there for me, and I can’t thank them enough. ey help you out with everything, from a medical card to moral support. Nothing is too much for them, they’re a phenomenal organisation. ere’s always someone there for you if you need to talk, and I’m a trained chef, so I’ve been able to work in the house we live in. I get to do something constructive with my days and I love it.”

Regarding the clothing campaign, he says: “Who doesn’t want to be a star? It’s a brilliant campaign, and hopefully raises awareness for the work ONE does because without it so many men would be on the streets. ey really changed my life completely, and I owe them so much.”

Eddie Culshaw

Eddie Culshaw, 60, was born in Manchester but was brought up in Ballinteer. As a child, he already knew he wanted a life on the water, and in 1970 he joined the Naval Service in Haulbowline, Cobh.

For the next 25 years he served his time on several Naval ships, before transferring to the Naval Service Reserve, where he spent another 18 years, giving a combined 43 years of service to the Defence Forces.

“I always wanted a life on the high seas,” he says. “I loved the water and I loved the 40 plus years I spent in the Navy. I lived on ships out on the Atlantic Ocean and have been all over the Mediterranean. It was a dangerous life on the high seas, lives were put on the line at times, men serving their country. But when I turned 60 it was time for me to retire, but it was hard.”

Eddie was initially worried about leaving, and when his marriage ended, he found himself living in the shed in the back garden of a family member.

“My marriage ended and I was living o a pension,” he continues. “I was actually working as a safety o cer in Dún Laoghaire, but I just found things too hard. I was never going to get a mortgage, so what could I do? I was always aware of ONE, but I never thought I’d need their service, but ten I did, and I couldn’t be more thankful.”

Brendan Monaghan

Brendan Monaghan, 62, from Ballyfermot, joined the Defence Forces in 1977 when he was 17, and served for 1 years.

A er his training, he was posted to the Cavalry Corps and was serving in South Lebanon at the time when Corporal Michael McCarthy was tragically shot dead in 1991, saying that the killing of Private Sean Rooney in the same region last year really hit home with him.

DONATE:

You can donate € to the campaign by going to www.one-veterans. org/donate, or by texting VETERAN to 50300.

You can also watch the campaign video here: https://youtu.be/qfAbFkXD8fo while serving abroad.”

Despite the challenges, Brendan says he “loved every minute of the Army, and really missed it a er it ended. I was living in the Curragh and had children, but I just felt the time was right, but then I didn’t want to leave and regretted it.

“I have done umpteen jobs since but I never had a regular wage. In the Army you could always rely on that, but I was doing bits and bobs when it ended, so life got very tough.”

When his own marriage ended, Brendan moved to Dublin, but life got even tougher.

He moved into ONE’s Brú na bhFiann in Smith eld, Dublin, and his life changed, so he was eager to take part in the clothing campaign, which he says was: “gas work, a lot of fun, and I’m delighted to be involved with it, and hopefully the message it’s trying to convey gets across.”

“I was one of the soldiers who donated blood when Corporal McCarthy was shot, that’s why I remember it so well,” he says. “ at’s also why it really hit me hard when Private Rooney died. Two identical incidents, two factions shooting across the road at each other. It was a tragic incident, but both killings just show the dangerous situations Irish peacekeepers are faced with

“Someone suggested I try ONE and it has just been phenomenal. We’re all exsoldiers so the camaraderie there is great. I don’t plan on staying forever, but at the moment I’m really enjoying it. My life has turned around completely, and it’s all thanks to ONE.

“I just hope this campaign is a great success because it is a charity that deserves so much, so hopefully the awareness increases and some funds can be raised to ensure other former Defence Forces members are able to live a decent life when they leave.”