Sarah Holmes is a Junior Copywriter at Havas Lynx, passionate about making complex healthcare information and patient communications accessible. With a background in copywriting for education and advertising, Sarah has been with Lynx for over 12 months and is enjoying making a difference to people’s lives through creative concepts and captivating copy.

This year marks Broughton House’s centenary, one hundred years of providing independent nursing and residential care for veterans of the armed forces and merchant navy in the North West. We’re proud to have recently worked alongside the veterans to shine a light on this remarkable institution and its inspiring elderly residents.

Broughton House was one of our nominated charities throughout 2015, and after visiting the house, we realised it doesn’t have anywhere near the recognition it truly deserves. To remedy this, we created a pro-bono campaign including an exhibition at Manchester’s cultural hub, HOME Manchester, and a beautiful commemorative book to celebrate the charity’s 100 years.

The campaign, titled We Serve Those, has now launched with a month-long exhibition at HOME Manchester and the fabric-bound book available to purchase on the campaign site We Serve Those. Both the book and the exhibition feature the incredible stories of the veterans who live at Broughton House. I asked Angus Prior, the copywriter on the project, about his experience: “It was very, very humbling. You talk to the residents there, these lovely old guys who’ll laugh and joke with you, and you find out that actually they were in the D-day landings or spent three years as a POW. It was inspiring to learn about a place that gives back to veterans who have given a lot already. The staff there are some of the friendliest, kindest people you could meet!”

The project was the collective work of the team at Lynx, photographer Daniel Walmsley, and three others who volunteered their time and resources to make the project a reality; illustrator Jennifer Quinn, Pressision Press, who printed the book and G.F. Smith, who provided the stock.

Featuring across the campaign are the true stories of these dedicated servicemen who fought then, so we could have what we do now. The stories are supported by memorabilia from their experiences and contain remarkable video footage of the challenging period.

The exhibition is described by HOME as: “…explicitly honest portraiture that has not been retouched or altered, presenting an unapologetic depiction of ageing that replaces superficial notions of beauty with nobility and authenticity. A combination of intimate, unwavering photography and personal stories, Brought to Light offers a contemporary narrative of veterans who are as brave as they are humble.”

The exhibition runs until the 6^th March in the Granada Foundation Galleries 1 & 2 at HOME Manchester, and you can find out more about the project on We Serve Those, and more about Broughton House on its website.