Lt. Neal Turkington was a young Gurkha officer from Portadown who served in Afghanistan and died there in July 2010 - the same month I arrived in Kabul, where I spent a year and a half. I didn't know him. But over subsequent months I heard and read about his remarkable and generous life. Neal worked with a number of NGOs to build schools and help communities overseas, including in El Salvador. To honour Neal's memory his family set up the Neal Turkington Nepal Project - to support the building of schools in Nepal - the home of the Gurkhas.

I owe a lot to Gurkhas - many ex-Gurkhas from the Indian Army guarded the camp where I lived and some gave their lives doing so. 

Now that I am back in Ireland I have decided to walk along the border - from Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough to raise money for the Neal Turkington Nepal Project. I would be very grateful if you could support this initiative.