£25,000 raised in honour of fallen Pulborough soldier

More than £25,000 has been raised in memory of Lance Corporal James Brynin, who was killed in action in Afghanistan.
Brynin was killed in actionBrynin was killed in action
Brynin was killed in action

The soldier, who was from Pulborough and had connections with Horsham Football Club, died aged 22 on Tuesday October 15 last year.

Since then donations have flooded in via an online Memory Giving website set up by Ian Hart Funeral Service in Worthing.

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The money has been donated to Hound for Heroes which aims to provide specially trained assistance dogs to injured and disabled military and emergency service personnel.

L/Cpl Brynin, an intelligence corps analyst, was a dog lover whose own loyal Labrador Luke watched along with his family as his body was repatriated.

The donations already collected are more than enough to provide the £20,000 it takes to train and give support to a Hounds for Heroes dog throughout its lifetime.

The family hope that donations will continue so that they can fund a second dog.

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“This is what James would have wanted,” said his mother Sharon.

“James was a really terrific young man.

“He was so full of life. He had so much potential. He gave his all.

“We have to ensure that something good continues in his name.

“We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of people who have donated and also the tributes on his page.

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“I read the messages quite often, we all do. We are comforted by how many people are thinking of us and want to do something in memory of James.

“It is touching to see some lovely tributes. That really does help.”

L/Cpl Brynin read about the charity before he went to Afghanistan and admired the work they were doing.

Sharon continued: “As a family we believe in the charity.

“James loved his dogs so much. He was interested in the charity; it was close to his heart.

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“We think James would be touched to see how much everyone appreciated him and we think he would be humbled.”

Hundreds of people have donated on the Memory Giving page, some of them anonymously.

Memory Giving director Julian Walker added: “The response to this page has been incredible.

“£1,000 was collected within the first day. It is good to see the tremendous generosity of people who want to remember James and to read the moving tributes left in memory of this outstanding soldier.”

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Hounds for Heroes runs a training centre near Petersfield where dogs are being taught a range of skills, including opening doors and even getting money out of cash dispensers.

This is done with a year of basic training, to turn their ‘cadet’ puppies into well-behaved dogs, followed by a programme of advanced training to teach the specialist skills.

The charity was founded in 2009 by Allen Parton, an ex-serviceman who was injured in the Gulf War. Allen’s assistance dog Endal helped him recover from a serious head injury.

To donate to the fund, visit: www.memorygiving.com/lcpljamesjayleebrynin

For more information on the charity, visit: houndsforheroes.com/