“I can now live independently in my adapted home thanks to the Fund”

When RAF veteran Stacey Mitchell's career was cut short in November 2016 following a leg injury and subsequent leg amputation, Stacey reached out to the RAF Benevolent Fund, who found, purchased, and adapted a property for her to help her regain independence. In February 2025, Stacey will be taking part in the Invictus Games with Team UK.

Stacey, now 30, joined the RAF in 2013 as a Senior Aircraftwoman, based in RAF Odiham where she worked with the Chinooks. As a fit and healthy young adult, Stacey was sporty and enjoyed playing station netball, running and regular gym sessions. However, during a run one day, Stacey sustained an overuse injury in her leg.

Stacey said: “I had physio and during a rehabilitation course I was left in complete agony, tears were streaming down my face as I struggled to hold them back. I was later placed in an air cast boot for seven months.”

The boot made her worse triggering an irreversible, severe nerve condition meaning she couldn’t use her left leg at all, and Stacey was left in debilitating constant nerve pain – struggling to deal with daily life. “I lost my independence, something many including myself have previously taken for granted. I was in so much pain – it was horrific, I merely existed”, said Stacey.

She added: “After four years of decline I had a conversation with my medical team. Either I could live with it as it was or have elective amputation. I couldn’t imagine another minute in such pain and decided to go forward with a through knee amputation in the hope I would gain a better quality of life and one day, walk again.”

Stacey had major surgery in 2018 and stayed in Headley Court – a rehabilitation unit for people with lost limbs – for 18 months. She then moved home to her parents’ house, but it wasn’t adapted to suit her needs, and it was a struggle.

“Before the Fund stepped in, things were difficult for me. I didn’t go home until 18 months after my operation, and when I went back to my parents’ house, it wasn’t set up at all. I got in touch with the Fund to see if they could help, and they purchased a property for me and adapted it to my needs. I moved in in October 2022.”

Stacey, who now permanently uses a wheelchair, added: “The support has been incredible in improving my quality of life – I didn’t realise the impact. It’s given me the independence I’ve been craving for so long and has allowed me to live my life again.”

Stacey will be competing in the Invictus Games 2025 hosted in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada. Stacey is competing in Wheelchair Rugby of which she is the Vice Captain of Team UK. There are 64 members of Team UK taking part with 550 competitors from 25 nations, including 28 RAF personnel.

The multi-sport event offers a recovery pathway for internationally wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women. This year’s Games will be the first to include both winter and summer adaptive sports, including sit-ski, wheelchair basketball, swimming, skeleton, indoor rowing and wheelchair rugby, to name a few.

The Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 will take place from 8-16 February 2025.