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ABOUT BEWSA
BEWSA was
formed in September 1987 after a small group of disabled ex-service men and
women were invited to fly to the United States of America to participate in the
“Paralysed Veterans of America (PVA) National Veterans Wheelchair Games”.
After seeing
first hand how the Americans used participation in sport as a source of
rehabilitation for those who have been injured in the service of their country,
and seeing that the UK did not have an organisation to meet these needs, BEWSA
was born.
BEWSA was registered in 1997 as a National Armed Forces Charity (No. 1071226).
This opened up new channels for funding from such organisations as the
Lottery fund, Foundation for Sport and the Arts, and many other grant making
bodies, ex-service agencies and charities.
The object of the charity is to promote welfare and rehabilitation of
disabled ex-service men and women through participation in sport, sports
medicine and any other means deemed legal under charity law.
Since the first invitation to the PVA Games, BEWSA has had an open invitation to
send 12 of its wheelchair athletes to compete for Great Britain against the
American and Puerto Rican disabled ex-service athletes.
BEWSA is the only ex-service association outside of the USA to be allowed
to take part in these games.
As well as helping those who have been injured with their rehabilitation through
sport and sports medicine, BEWSA also encourages its athletes to compete to the
highest standards of competition. We
have many within our ranks that have competed in summer and winter paralympic
games with many medals to their credit.
Due to our special
relationship with the RAF and Army, we arrange monthly training weekends at RAF
Cosford (Shropshire) and Azimghur Barracks (Wiltshire) for those who wish to
train for their events. The bases offer a wide range of facilities that enable
the athletes to train for a number of events including: track & field,
archery, basketball, power lifting, shooting, tennis and weight training.
January 2000 saw the beginning of a new venture for BEWSA and its members;
Millennium Dive (BEWSA) came into being with the aim of teaching disabled
ex-service men and women the art of scuba diving.
This has turned out qualified disabled divers who can now go on to become
qualified dive instructors and pass on their newfound knowledge to others.
This venture has been supported by a grant from the Millennium Festival
Awards and service and civilian diving instructors.
BEWSA is also a BSAC member (BSAC 2000) in which each dive student is
enrolled. We believe that this is a
first for disabled people and we are happy that BEWSA is leading the way.
In support of
the welfare of our members, BEWSA has its own Welfare Officer who, working with
The Royal British Legion (RBL) and service charities / associations, can offer
advice on the full range of welfare and disability matters and if necessary make
representation to RBL or service agencies on a member’s behalf.
This advice and support is on offer five days a week.
A welfare
clinic is also held once a month during the training weekends.
Over the years,
a very good relationship has been built up both with RAF Cosford and Azimghur
Barracks to the extent that RAF and Army personnel have become members.
A retired Air Chief Marshal and former Vice Chief of the Defence Staff is
our president, a former RAF Cosford base commander, now an Air Commodore, is a
vice-patron.
BEWSA,
supported by the RBL, has, over the years, organised and hosted world and
international ex-service wheelchair games within the country: Challenge 93 at
Stoke Mandeville in 1993 and The Wilkinson Sword of Peace Games at Gateshead in
1995.
The
participation in sport and sports medicine plays a very serious role in the
rehabilitation and re-integration of disabled ex-service men and women who have
been injured in or outside of service life.
Sport has always played a major part in service life and BEWSA encourages
its young and not so young to overcome their own physical and mental
disabilities to become as active as they possibly can and to live life to the
full. Being disabled does not mean
that people are not able to enjoy and compete at any level of sport.
As you will see
from our Meetings and Sports pages, we cover an extensive range of sporting
activities.
Membership Contacts Meetings
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