Lest he forget

Former soldier gets names of all 223 British troops killed in Afghanistan war in the past seven years tattooed on his body

Lest he forget

Former soldier gets names of all 223 British troops killed in Afghanistan war in the past seven years tattooed on his body

The 43-year-old had the names each half a centimetre high etched over his body starting at 11 am on November 11, Armistice Day, when Britain honours its war dead.

And his amazing tribute is being sponsored to raise money for the soldiers' charity.

Shaun admitted, "It's a painful business going under the needle, but it's nothing compared to what the troops are going through every single day on the front line.

"I don't mind suffering for a few days if I can let the lads know that people really care about what they're doing out there, and raise some money for the guys."

Staff running the charity Help for Heroes were near tears when the married dad-of-two rang with news of his extraordinary scheme last week.

Shaun, who served with the 8th Battalion Light Infantry Regiment from 1989 to 1996, said, "The woman I spoke to at the office sounded really choked when I told her what I was doing.

"She said it was a brilliant idea, but I could tell that she'd got a lump in her throat and was getting really emotional as we were talking. I couldn't work out why for a while.

"Then eventually she told me: 'My husband's name is on your list'."

The list

The names are of all the servicemen and women who have perished over the last seven and a half years up until early November this year.

Tattoo artist Kevin Kent has drawn up a comprehensive list of all the casualties with the help of the Ministry of Defence.

Kevin (45), who has a nephew and a son-in-law serving in the Army, said, "I told Shaun that it's going to be a slow and painful process.

"It's not easy fitting in all the names, especially as we wanted every single one to be clearly visible."

Kevin who gave his services free of charge plans to update the list of names each year if need be.

He added, "I'm praying that we don't have to add any more names next year, but Shaun is serious about doing this right, and if more soldiers are killed then we'll have to find room for their names as time goes by.

A spokeswoman for Help for Heroes said, "We are used to people going the extra mile when it comes to raising money, but this goes far beyond the norm."

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