Matthew James is a name that might be familiar to you. He is a hard working Gas Engineer with a growing reputation, who happened to visit Tunisia in June for a well-earned break with his partner Saera. He is also regarded as a hero.
As some of you may recall, a lone gunman indiscriminately and callously attacked innocent tourists, many of whom were with their families, whilst on the beach in Sousse, Tunisia. Matthew was shot three times as he threw himself on Saera in an attempt to protect her from the hail of bullets. It was this selfless act that led many to regard Matthew as a hero and rightly so too!
Miraculously Matthew survived the ordeal and his quick actions spared Saera, but he did sustain serious injuries which required prolonged medical attention. And unfortunately, the time needed for his recovery was time away from his growing business, SAS Gas Solutions.
His story has touched millions, including many plumbers and gas engineers, some of whom decided to help relieve some of the financial burden by creating a fundraising campaign. So far, over £15,000 has been raised and the generous reaction of fellow engineers has provided a positive contrast to the terrible acts committed in Tunisia.
Matthew is also familiar to many at Limegreen, not only because of work connections, but through school and shared social groups. Saera contacted Limegreen’s Jamie and Rhys Gale shortly after the incident, asking if we could look after his customers during his recovery, which we were more than happy to do.
Thankfully, Matthew has recovered sufficiently to return to work and as further proof of his heroism, he has been working with us at Limegreen! Or as we like to joke, “He’s signed for Limegreen on loan”.
The evil let loose on that beach has been universally condemned and rightly so. The reaction of friends, family, engineers and strangers affected by his story is what we should reflect on. The determination to do good in the face of evil and the support shown by strangers – willing to help, is our response to terrorism.