An Afghanistan veteran who lost both legs and an arm in an explosion is taking on an epic challenge, after dedicating his life to helping others.
Andy Reid, from Rainford in St Helens, was "blown up" by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Afghanistan on October 13, 2009. He defied the odds, having lost both his legs and right arm, and has since made it his mission to help others.
The dad-of-two not only received an MBE for his charitable work and set up the Standing Tall Foundation, but he has set himself another incredible challenge of becoming the first UK triple amputee to climb Kilimanjaro. Having set off on September 29, Andy is now halfway to the summit.
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It is hoped he will reach the summit on October 13, to mark 13 years to the day he was injured. Hoping to raise £10,000 for the charity, already, the incredible challenge has raised over £9,000.
Wife Claire told the ECHO: "The challenge is huge. When he was 22 and fully able bodied in the army, he climbed Kilimanjaro but now at 46 he wanted to do a challenge to raise awareness of the foundation and raise funds to help people.
"He's halfway up. He's really tired and sore and aching but is in really good spirits and is really determined. He's so incredibly strong and wants to make his children proud.
"He's an amazing role model and everyone is really rooting for him. We are all really proud, I couldn't believe it when he told me he wanted to do it but I supported him all the way."
The Standing Tall Foundation aims to promote the mental and physical health of all community groups, through the provision of counselling, addiction support and physical activity initiatives. The mission statement said: "We further extend this support into the community to help those in financial hardship, including the homeless, via the provision of grants, items and services using the resources secured by the Foundation or those made available to us."
Claire told the ECHO so many have already been helped through the foundation, including a young man who was living in the woods and teenagers battling with their mental health as well as homeless veterans. She said: "We have been helping so many different kinds of people, all ages.
"I always support Andy in what he wants to do and this is such an incredible challenge. I think it's really important to show people that you can achieve what you put your mind to.
"He just wants to help people because he say's it's the right thing to do and he knows that by doing this, it's going to help people. We are really grateful for the support everyone gives us.
"It just feels like such a long time ago that we forget he was injured. He can do so much and nothing stops him. He does everything he wants to do. The kids think he's amazing, you just deal with what life throws at you, you never know what's going to happen."
The fundraising page can be found here. More information about the Standing Tall Foundation can be found by clicking here.
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