Men’s Day Out poster boy Phil is looking straw-some!

Smurfs to Scarecrows

Plymouth born and bred, Phil has worked at the dockyard for the majority of his career and witnessed the compassionate care St Luke’s provides when we cared for his sister 15 years ago.

He said: “The care my sister received there was above and beyond and the staff that looked after her were angels. She received respect, care and compassion during her stay. The ‘job’ they do, I couldn’t and so I am very grateful they do it.”

Phil knew he wanted to play his part in helping to fundraise for other families going through something similar.

“I had helped out with door-to-door tin shaking to raise funds and also one time on NYE with a number of mates around the pubs in Plymouth, so the opportunity to raise some money at Men’s Day Out seemed like a great idea.

“I have undertaken the walk for every year since it started bar one. I even did one on my wedding anniversary! The one I missed was the next year when my wife booked a holiday to make sure I would share our wedding anniversary together!

“I generally walk with some good friends or my sons and son in law. A couple of years ago a good friend of mine brought a mate who had recently been bereaved, losing his wife. Another good friend of mine had lost his wife a few years ago and by the end of it they had spent a lot of time talking and laughing and realised that they had shared a load of experiences – it was then that I realised it wasn’t just about the walk and beer. The fundraising and chatting were as important.”

From Smurfs to scarecrows, Phil has done it all, but fundraising has always been at the forefront of his mind.

“A chap in work sponsored me and said he would double it if I did the walk dressed as a scarecrow. So I asked my wonderful wife if she could knock something up and she created the outfit overnight! He did double his donation to £50!”