In episode 248 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Nick Gazzard.
Nick is the CEO of the Hollie Gazzard Trust (HGT).
The Trust was set up by him after the murder of his daughter Hollie, by an ex-boyfriend when she was just 20 years old.
After that moment, Nick set up the Trust to try and stop what happened to Hollie from happening to anyone else ever again.
The Trust helps reduce domestic abuse through creating and delivering programmes on domestic abuse and promoting healthy relationships. It delivers these programmes to schools, colleges, universities, police forces and other community groups.
The ultimate aim of the Trust is to positively change the lives of young people through partnerships in communities, as well as working alongside other charities and professional agencies.
In this episode we discuss Nick’s life as a professional footballer before an ACL injury ended his dreams of becoming one, fatherhood and his volunteering work for the Gloucestershire FA for 17 years.
We then discuss Hollie’s life, her character, his favourite memories of her and the events which led up to her murder and death.
We discuss the grief he and his family went through after Hollie’s death and why he decided to use that huge trauma for the loss of his child and channel it into the Trust in her name which still exists today.
We then discuss how men can spot the signs that someone they know may be either a perpetrator of domestic abuse or a victim, how we can intervene and take action and avoid being a bystander for abuse.
We finish by discussing a stroke Nick went through in 2020 and how it forced him to create a better work-life balance for himself and take better care of his mental health.
As always, #itsokaytovent
You can find out more about the Hollie Gazzard Trust here.
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