An army veteran who was living rough and often went hungry is now working as a top chef at a four-star hotel.
When he left the forces due to post traumatic stress disorder, Leon Parker, 24, struggled to adapt to civilian life.
He spent 13 weeks on the streets, most of it camped in a tent in woodland, going hungry and with only his dog Misty for company.
Leon said: “When I was in the armed forces, I felt on top of the world.”
But, once he had left, he said he “soon realised there was no one around, no one to talk to and no one to help. I was helpless, hopeless, homeless”.
Leon was helped back on his feet by the Royal British Legion, which paid his deposit on a flat in Birkenhead, Merseyside.
Couple can't get out of their own front door as car flips and smashes into house
That led to his job at the Leverhulme Hotel, in Port Sunlight.
The proud chef said: “It sounds like a fairytale but it’s the truth.”
