Pedalling Padre to join Princes William & Harry at H4H opening

The Jesuit priest known as the 'Pedalling Padre' will be among the guests at Tedworth House next week, when the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry open the Help 4 Heroes (H4H) Recovery Centres. Father Roger Dawson SJ, who has cycled on the last three Battlefield Bike Rides and conducted the ceremonies at the memorials and the war cemeteries on the route, will be attending the event at which the H4H Centres at Tidworth, Catterick, Colchester and Plymouth will be declared officially open.

H4H helps to provide a national network of support for service personnel who have suffered life-changing injuries in conflicts and their families with a view to them achieving their full potential. The charity was founded by two old friends of Fr Dawson with whom he served in the Royal Green Jackets in the 1980s. Princes William and Harry will be meeting many of the wounded and their families today (20 May), as well as charitable and corporate partners and some selected fundraisers.

Founder Bryn Parry said: "While we are celebrating this historic moment when we declare our Centres officially open, we are also thanking all of you who have done so much to make this a reality. Hundreds of thousands of people raising millions to help our wounded is absolutely wonderful. On their behalf, I would like to say thank you."

Over the past three Battlefield Bike Rides, Fr Dawson has raised £20,000 and has become an integral part of the bike rides as Chaplain for nearly 300 cyclists who take part - including bereaved relatives and service personnel who have been injured and wounded and who cycle the distance on arm-powered bikes. The route goes through some of the major battlefields of the First and Second World Wars and stops at the war graves to honour the dead.

"It's a journey," said Fr Dawson. "It is obviously a physical journey, but it is also an emotional and spiritual journey in which many of the cyclists face some of the big questions - about life and death, war and suffering, human evil and human goodness, and the meaning and purpose of our lives. As an injured soldier with no legs said to us: 'We are the lucky ones. We have still got our lives. The question is - what are we going to do with it'."

On Sunday 2 June, at 2pm, hundreds of H4H cyclists will converge on Whitehall in London from all points of the compass. Some will have come from Paris and Washington, others will leave Tedworth House at 2am in a Dawn Raid, others from Birmingham and Edinburgh, all joined in a simple desire to help our heroes, according to Bryn Parry. "The cyclists will include Wounded Warriors from The USA and Canada who will ride alongside our own UK team of Wounded Heroes. We believe that this will be the greatest group of wounded cyclists ever to ride into London. They will have ridden miles to prove that they are still in the fight and are as good as any able bodied person, and more….

"The building blocks are now in place but the hard work begins. For those who have been injured on our behalf, there will be no peace. Thank you all so much for everything you have done to date and please, for their sake, keep it coming!"

To sponsor Fr Roger Dawson in support of H4H, see www.bmycharity.com/pedallingpadre2013