A North Yorkshire firefighter returned to work for the first time in a year this weekend, after being diagnosed with Stage 3 bowel cancer last March.
Calum Balding, 38, a wholetime firefighter with North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, was unable to do any exercise or work for more than a year as he underwent an intense course of treatment.
As a beneficiary of The Fire Fighters Charity, he received support at one of its residential centres, Jubilee House in Cumbria, at the start of this year and says it helped him build up his fitness and confidence, to make his return to work possible.
Calum, who is stationed at Huntington, is now awaiting the results of his one-year scan, but says he remains hopeful the treatment has been a success and feels more confident in himself, thanks to the support of the Charity.
The Fire Fighters Charity supports the health and wellbeing needs of all serving and retired members of the UK’s fire services community – offering specialist, lifelong support to thousands of serving and retired personnel every year, as well as their families.
Calum said: ‘This Charity is the whole package; it helps you with everything from the mental wellbeing and sleep to stress and anything that might be affecting your physical health. It’s not just your recovery… you’re coming out in a better position to what you came in.’
Now, as part of Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, Calum wants to encourage others to reach out for support if they’re going through something similar – while encouraging people to continue supporting The Fire Fighters Charity.
He added: ‘I’ve done a bit of fundraising in the past for this Charity. I know it’s thanks to supporters’ donations that I’ve been able to get help myself.
‘For me now, going forwards, it’s also making sure people aren’t ashamed to reach out. Accepting help from people is not something to be scared or embarrassed about. I’ve learned that a lot this last year myself. When people offer you care and support, it’s there for a reason and you should really take it if you need it.’
Kath Savage, The Fire Fighters Charity’s Nursing Services Lead, said: ‘I’m so pleased we were able to help Calum with his recovery and aided him in building up both his physical and mental fitness at Jubilee House. Our rehabilitation programme helps beneficiaries just like Calum to improve their overall wellbeing, whether it’s amid a long-term health condition, following an injury or any number of other circumstances.
‘The donations from our generous supporters make all of this possible and ensure we can continue to be there for fire and rescue service personnel and their families for years to come.’
You can read Calum’s full story, and watch his video interview, here: www.firefighterscharity.org.uk/calum-balding
