Olly Newman returned to the Island earlier this year after receiving specialist care in the UK following a collision outside Le Port car park left him with life-changing injuries in 2014. Mr Newman was 19 when an uninsured driver hit his car at speed as he pulled out onto the road.
And now, thanks to charity Wetwheels, the Islander, a keen surfer and guitarist, has taken to the water around St Ouen’s Bay for the first time since.
His friends, who set up the Peas&Glove charity in his name to help pay for his care and rehabilitation, say they want to one day get Mr Newman back in the surf.
One of his best friends, Matt Daly, one of the founders of Peas&Glove, said: ‘It was so good to see the look on his face when we were in St Ouen’s Bay. He was really awake and alert. The driver asked us where we wanted to go and we just had to say St Ouen’s Bay. We went around Corbière and Rocco Tower and we were checking out the ’Splash too.’
The 28-year-old added: ‘I didn’t know much about Wetwheels to be honest and we’ve been meaning to get Olly in the sea for a while so it was great. It’s a great charity. We want to get him on a wave with Healing Waves [a charity that helps people with disabilities to surf] but it’s a little bit too early for that yet.’
Peas&Glove has raised tens of thousands of pounds since it was launched. Mr Daly said its main aim was to get Mr Newman back to Jersey.
Now that has been accomplished he said the plan was to use the charity’s momentum to help people who have suffered similar trauma across the British Isles as well as other charities.
‘Where Olly was staying at the Queen Elizabeth Foundation I got to know lots of the other people who suffered brain injuries. We want to help people like that too and also support charities and organisations that help in that area such as Southampton Hospital or the air ambulance.’
Peas&Glove’s next event is raising money and awareness for the Kafunjo Community Project, a charity that educates impoverished children in Uganda. The charity was set up by Jersey resident Jonathan Stark after a chance meeting in Uganda.
For more information on the event, which is being held at the Watersplash on Saturday 7 September, visit the Peas&Glove Facebook page.
Mr Daly added: ‘I just want to thank everyone who has supported Peas&Glove over the years. It means so much.’
