In this episode of the Connected Communities podcast, we speak with Sam Magee. Sam is the Lead Practitioner for Adult Services at Man On! Inverclyde, ASIST and SafeTalk Trainer. During this episode we dive deeply into Sam’s personal experiences of education, serving with the British Army and his own challenges with mental health. We also explore the role he now does in preventing suicide in the Inverclyde community, as well as what he does to support his own wellbeing and a song he wrote and recorded.

Covered in this podcast:

· Early life growing up in Greenock.

· The loss of friends through addiction and suicide.

· Sam’s experience of education, skidging and exam results.

· The unseen impact of 2 teachers and feeling seen/valued.

· Joining the Army or being a bad guy on TV.

· Phase 1 and 2 training – Finding commonality with strangers.

· Adventure training in Canada and getting lost with bears.

· Deploying to Iraq for Op Telic, losing friends and reassessing life.

· Detaching as a coping mechanism and how it filter into every aspect of life.

· “I didn’t feel anything because I was trying to hide from everything.”

· Making the last call to family on operations and not knowing if you’re going to stand up again.

· Taking home the violence and disassociating from my own feelings.

· A difficult transition into civvie street, mental health challenges and finding a new belonging.

· Doing Christmas duties to avoid going home. “I just sat and cried all day.”

· “What I needed was peace. Peace of my own thoughts.”

· The impact of Gordy’s suicide and the journey to helping others with Man On Inverclyde!

· The powerful initiatives that are preventing suicide and building connection in Inverclyde

· The Mental Health Buffet

· Closing Ritual - Kitbag

· “Heaven Can Wait”

· The Mindful Minute

References and Support:

Mental Health Websites and Contact Numbers – www.beinnunity.co.uk/support

Veteran Support – www.beinnunity.co.uk/erv

Man On! Podcast

Man On! Inverclyde - https://manoninverclyde.co.uk

Heaven Can Wait – Sam McGhee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gCzLFr5nJM

In this episode of the Connected Communities podcast, we speak with Sean Molino BCA. Sean is the Managing Director Forces Fitness Ltd and Founder of the Veterans Awards, and served with the Welsh Guards. His education programmes have reached over 45000 young people across every local authority in Wales. He also an ambassador for the Welsh Governments Big Ideas Wales programme that focuses on developing entrepreneurial skills with 16 – 25 year olds, and was invited to Buckingham Palace in 2019 to be awarded the British Citizen Award for his contributions to Health.

Covered in this podcast:

· Early life context, education and parental separation

· Moving in with a grandparent and a safe space

· Did you always want to join the army?

· Joining the Welsh Guards, a home within a home

· What was phase 1 and phase 2 training like?

· Mental health support for veterans

· Early selection for becoming an Army Physical Training Instructor (PTI)

· Early promotion, Corporals Course and responsibility for other ranks

· Signing off and the resettlement process

· Advice for young people who might want to explore the armed forces as a career

· Advice for those who are transitioning out of the army

· First role outside of the army and navigating civvie street as a leisure manager, then as Lidl Training Academy and Store Manger

· Launching Forces Fitness Ltd and the opportunities that young people are provided

· Looking after the team and culture

· Growing the company from boot camps to delivering educational programmes to over 650 schools and 45000 young people

· What started the Veterans Awards and making it about celebrating everyone

· Putting profit back into the veteran community through the Small Grants Scheme

· Veterans’ mental health and having someone to trust

· Tips that Sean does to support the mental health of his teams

· The Mental Health Buffet

· Closing Ritual - Kitbag

· The Mindful Minute

References and Support:

Mental Health Websites and Contact Numbers – www.beinnunity.co.uk/support

Veteran Support – www.beinnunity.co.uk/erv

Forces Fitness Ltd – https://www.forcesfitness.co.uk

Veterans Awards - https://veteransawards.co.uk

Twitter - https://twitter.com/AwardsVeterans + https://twitter.com/ForcesFitness

• Did you think you would become a CEO?
• Teenage years and family life in South Side Glasgow
• Early memories of junior football and coaches
• When football got serious at 14 and going professional
• Injury and leaving the game
• Understanding the volume that don’t “make it”
• First job after football, navigating redundancy and taking an opportunity
• Entering education and moving to become the CEO at the School of Automation
• What is Robotic Process Automation
• Connecting young people with career opportunities in tech
• Reflection. Looking back to go forward
• Being the CEO of a new start-up
• Mental health and how knowledge influences leadership
• Is it the responsibility of an employer to look after their teams mental health?
• Establishing boundaries and the essential ingredients for creating a space to talk
• Leading with intention. What is more important? The person or the business?
• Closing Ritual - Kitbag
• Thanking Marc for his presence and calmness in my chaos
• The Mindful Minute