SERVICE charities from the Durham Light Infantry Soldiers, Sailors and Air Force Association and Army Benevolent Fund have united to help a former North-East serviceman.

Geordie Dowse, who was a sergeant in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), has been provided with an electric wheelchair by the charities.

Mr Dowse, who lives in Peterlee, east Durham, was taken ill in 2001. The illness, diagnosed as a viral infection of the spinal cord, left him partly disabled, forcing him to leave his beloved TA after 27 years of loyal service.

He had spent the first 24 years of his service with the 7 Battalion DLI, in Bishop Auckland, County Durham.

But in 1999, following cuts to the Infantry TA, he moved to 102 Battalion REME in nearby Newton Aycliffe, where he became mess manager.

Mr Dowse was a popular and active member of the unit, his many years experience in the TA providing invaluable, particularly during annual camps to Swynnerton in Shropshire in 1999, and Tregantle Fort, in Devon, in 2001.

Never afraid to take on a new challenge, Mr Dowse was one of the first TA soldiers to volunteer for the unpleasant duty of supporting local farmers during the foot-and-mouth epidemic, where his work with the farming community earned him special praise.

He was presented with his wheelchair by Lieutenant Colonel Tony Downes, Commanding Officer 102 Bn REME, and Colonel Arthur Charlton, who at one time was Mr Dowse's commanding officer and is now chairman of the SSAFA branch.