RAF Regiment 80: How RAF Benevolent Fund helps bereaved families

In the 80th year of the RAF Regiment it is important to note that those who serve have families and loved ones who can also be affected by the demands of that service. 

As the RAF's leading welfare charity, the RAF Benevolent Fund is here to help families and loved ones of serving personnel and veterans. 
 
One such person the Fund has helped is Jacqui Thompson, from Nottingham, whose husband Gary was a reservist with 504 Squadron of Nottingham – part of the RAF Regiment Squadron. 

In 1942, King George VI signed a Royal Warrant for "a Corps formed as an integral part of the RAF". Its role was to seize, secure and defend airfields to enable air operations to take place.

The catalyst for the RAF Regiment's formation was the fall of France in 1940, when the Germans' unique use of mobility and surprise, 'Blitzkrieg', demonstrated the vulnerability of airfields that were long considered safe.

Gary Thompson was deployed with 3 Squadron as an RAF Regiment Gunner when, in April 2008, he was killed alongside colleague Graham Livingstone. Two others were injured after their vehicle struck anti-tank mine in Kandahar, Afghanistan. 
 
Jacqui, 56, said Gary joined up in 2005, at the age of 48 because he "wanted to do his bit". 
 
Remembering the first impression she had meeting Gary; a doted Jacqui recalls “something remarkable” about her late husband, sharing that “Gary was a very proud RAF Regiment Gunner. He had the utmost respect and admiration for his fellow gunners. He was incredibly happy during his service in the Regiment. I lost the most amazing person I had ever met, my husband and best friend Gary Thompson."
 
Speaking about the 80th anniversary of the RAF Regiment, she said: "To mark anniversaries of this type I either go to the National Memorial Arboretum or Gary’s plaque local to the family home."
 
Turning to the support she received from the RAF Benevolent Fund, Jacqui said: "The Fund assisted me financially when Gary was killed.  I will never be able to adequately put into words how much the support has helped both financially and emotionally. They also helped fund my daughters at university, which was such a relief as I felt that, if their dad was still here, he would have financially supported them during this key time in their lives."
 
Jacqui is now an ambassador for the Fund. She said: "I've been involved with the Fund for over 14 years. What has always impressed me about the Fund is their commitment to RAF personnel and their immediate families, and how much they care about the RAF Family.
 
"Going through what myself and my family went through, I honestly cannot imagine what could have happened without the RAF Benevolent Fund's help and support. It gives me peace of mind knowing the Fund is ready to support serving RAF personnel, veterans and their families in their time of need."
 
She also had a message for those in the RAF, or their families, who require support: "You and your families have given and dedicated so much of yourselves to the RAF. It is only right and fitting that, in your time of need, you have the same level of support and commitment you have given to the RAF. This is gratitude for your service."