In the run up to the Corporate Relay Challenge – a race which will raise money for military patients treated at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham and to support future Olympic and Paralympic athletes – The Birmingham Post is highlighting those who will benefit.

With his calm but commanding presence, quiet confidence and infectious sense of humour, Father Michael Sharkey is the type of person you would want around when you’re on the frontline in Afghanistan.

Little wonder then that the chaplain has served there twice, as the Royal Marines’ padre to 42 Commando on the frontline and more recently in support of operations at Camp Bastion.

Father Michael has recently become chaplain for the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine (RCDM) in Birmingham, providing pastoral and spiritual care for the troops, their families and medical staff.

“When you’re accompanying lads on frontline missions you’re supporting them in some of the most challenging situations they will ever face,” explained Father Sharkey. “You’re not sure what’s going to be around the corner. You don’t know if you’ll come under enemy fire, trigger an IED – improvised explosive device – or come back to camp unscathed. The lads have their fears and anxieties and as a chaplain you’re there to support them by listening.”

Father Sharkey, whose gentle Scottish lilt belies his Glaswegian roots, has been a Navy chaplain for 20 years, spending the last 14 with the Royal Marines.

“The chaplain is pivotal to morale on operations as there is obviously a threat of being seriously injured or killed. I wear the same uniform as the lads, I do what they do and I’m alongside them, sharing the same risks.

“The only difference is that I don’t carry a weapon, which always prompts strange looks. When I point upwards and tell the lads that I have top cover and so do they, my confidence in God gives them comfort. Faith is present in Afghanistan and comforts us all when we lose our friends and colleagues,” explained Father Sharkey.

“My most difficult task has been conducting repatriation services, particularly when in one week I had to officiate at a service for four of my colleagues from 42 Commando Battle Group, as well as my involvement in the repatriation of 55 servicemen in my last tour. A key part of my role on my recent visit to Afghanistan was ensuring repatriations were carried out correctly, with dignity, using appropriate words and giving the lads an opportunity to give their own tributes.”

Father Sharkey, who is 51, is spending the next two years supporting the troops here in Birmingham.

“My role is challenging but it’s also extremely rewarding. I listen to the soldiers and their families and pray for them all in order to give them strength,” said Father Sharkey. “I’m always amazed and humbled by the lads’ progress, their wonderful senses of humour and their unfailing loyalty to their colleagues. There are guys who have come home with terrible injuries and they are more concerned about who’s left on the frontline. They are an inspiration to us all. The Forces & Families Centre that the hospital charity is fundraising for will give me the very best of facilities in which to give support and care to the military patients and their families”

* You can help QEHB Charity achieve its goal of creating a Forces & Families Centre at the hospital, for patients and their families to spend time together in a non clinical environment, by taking part in the Corporate Relay Challenge.

The four person relay race will take place on Wednesday, September 22 in Cannon Hill Park. To register or find out more, visit www.qehb.org/relaychallenge.