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Castleford mum wants to help pals of war hero son
HER son died a war hero surrounded by his friends.
Rifleman James 'Jimmy' Backhouse, of Castleford, was just 18 when he was killed by a Taliban explosive device while clearing a route for comrades in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan in July.
Now, his mother Sharon, 45, wants to show her support for James's pals from 2nd Battalion The Rifles as they recover in hospital from injuries suffered in the blast that claimed his life.
And she hopes to discover more about her son's life in the army.
Mrs Backhouse, 45 and husband Andrew, 47, are hoping to travel to Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham where the wounded are being treated.
Mrs Backhouse, of Queen's Park Drive, Airedale, said she is in touch on Facebook with one of James's friends recovering at the hospital. "They were really good friends, they were in Northern Ireland together and I think they were at Catterick as well. It will be upsetting, but it's something we feel we have got to do."
She added: "He never really talked about his life in the army when he came home. That was his life there and he never really told us much.
"I know he did a lot of running, he was always running when he came home. He seemed happy enough. You have only got to look at pictures of him to know how happy he was."
Mrs Backhouse said she finds it to difficult to deal with coverage of the war.
"At the moment I'm not very good so I'm not watching. I'm finding it a struggle to cope at the moment."
The Backhouse family plan to attend the 2nd Battalion The Rifles regiment homecoming parade in Northern Ireland next month.
James, who died on July 10, was one of two Castleford soldiers killed in Afghanistan in the same month.
Bombadier Craig Hopson, 24, was killed on July 25 when the vehicle he was in was hit by a roadside bomb.
A new war memorial planned for Castleford town centre town will bear both men's names.
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Friday 25 May 2012
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