Book for children separated from their dads sold in aid of FIH

Major MacGregor has two young children aged 3 and 5, and has been forced to spend long periods away from home with the armed forces.  His wife Vicky is a former Great Ormond Street nurse.  He says 'with the support of the Army Welfare Service, my psychology degree and Vicky's professional experience, I thought that we, as a family, would be able to cope well.

'But life is never easy - and there were occasions when Ben and Ellie became real handfuls; their behaviours changed for the worse and their questions about my absence grew more difficult to answer.'

In 2007 Major MacGregor was also responsible for more than 100 soldiers with 50 children between them.  He noticed that soldiers dealt better with their tour of duty if they had said their goodbyes properly and prepared for separation.

The book 'My Daddy's going away' emerged from these experiences.  The book can be read as a story in verse to very young children and describes the cycle of leaving and coming back - the birthday cards, the contact by phone, the plans for the future. The experiences it describes aren't just relevant to military families - there are many fathers who have to leave home to earn a living sometimes for months at a time, or who are absent through illness or family breakup.

The Sun newspaper featured Chris' story in February and discusses his children's growing realisation of where their father was as they grew.

The book has a short introduction from HRH The Prince of Wales and is sold in aid of both FIH and  Combat Stress a charity which helps soldiers who have been traumatised by their experiences.