We are thrilled to announce that rugby player Thom Smith has signed up to be an Ambassador for Little Troopers. The English rugby union player, who plays for Doncaster Knights, knows first-hand what it is like to be a military child as his Dad serves in the Royal Air Force.
Thom is excited to support the charity in helping more little troopers, he told us: “I have wanted to be affiliated with a charity for some time now and I was looking for an organisation where I felt I could help and make a real difference. I first heard about Little Troopers when my little sister, Florence, took part in a workshop at school. She really benefited from using the charity’s resources. After I did a bit of background research into the charity, it was a no brainer. I know first-hand how difficult it can be as a military child. Finding a charity which dedicates all its time to supporting and trying to get the best out of military life for them was so easy for me to get on board with.” You can read more about Thom’s experience of growing up in the military community here.
Thom is already embracing the ambassador role and kindly arranged some tickets to a Doncaster Knights game on 9th April. The tickets have been offered to 12 families as part of our celebrations for The Month of The Military Child. After the game the lucky families will get to meet some of the players.
Louise, founder of the charity comments, “I am thrilled to welcome Thom on board as an ambassador. It will be so inspirational for our little troopers to hear from a National Rugby player who has grown up in a military family. Thom has already helped us through the SQUAD series and amazing ticket offer. I can’t wait to work alongside him as the charity moves forward.”
Thom was one of the presenters on the Little Troopers teen podcast, SQUAD. Along with TV & radio broadcaster and mental health ambassador, Katie Thistleton, he spoke to 15 teens over eight weeks. Our podcast series has been uploaded to the Little Troopers website here. We have now added an evidence-based activity sheet for each episode and a video showing how the podcast is being used in schools. Schools can use these to further the discussion and use SQUAD as an interactive resource to support service children. You can find all the SQUAD resources here.
Louise and Thom will be having a chat live on Instagram on the 4th April 2022 at 8pm. Join us to find out more about how Thom will be working with us in the future.
