The Sky’s the Limit! Summer 2013 | Issue 5 www.timesaveslives.com Registered Charity 1133295 Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust @Cornwallairamb Cornwall Air Ambulance Newsletter Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust, Trevithick Downs, Newquay, Cornwall TR8 4DY Tel: 01637 889926 Email: [email protected]Mission Count so far: 23,978 Win A Car and help keep Cornwall Air Ambulance flying! This summer we are giving away a brand new Peugeot 107 Active 5 door as the top prize in our Summer Prize Draw! This amazing prize has been kindly donated by Hawkins Motor Group and is worth a whopping £10,000! A Royal Occasion You could be in with a chance of winning this wonderful prize and driving away in a brand new car for just £1 per ticket. Every ticket sold will help to keep Cornwall Air Ambulance flying. Not only do we have a car as our first prize but we have other wonderful prizes on offer too! Our second prize is a two night stay, including breakfast and a dinner, at The Rosevine on the stunning Roseland Peninsula. This secluded hotel is the perfect location for a weekend away from it all, relaxing in the comfy lounge and soaking up the ambiance of the tranquil Porthcurnick beach. On offer for third prize is a VIP tour of Classic Air Force museum along with a scenic flight in one of their vintage aircraft. You’re sure to have a brilliant day out at this living aviation museum near Newquay and to top it off, imagine soaring high above the Cornish coastline in a classic aircraft! You’ll be able to find us selling tickets at events across the County throughout the summer and you’re also able to buy them from your local Air Ambulance shop or by calling HQ. Good luck! We were very excited here at Cornwall Air Ambulance when we were invited to celebrate our Patron HRH The Duchess of Cornwall’s birthday with her and the Prince of Wales in Lostwithiel on their recent visit to Cornwall. Some of our star volunteers had a chance to talk to the Duchess about the invaluable work they do, as did two of our paramedics Stuart Croft and Paul Symonds, our Head of Fundraising Susie Smith, our Chief Executive Paula Martin and our Chairman Lady Mary Holborow. The Duchess also spent a great deal of time talking to one of our airlifted patients Lisa Michell and her husband Steve. Lisa was recently airlifted to the specialist burns unit at Swansea’s Morriston Hospital after Lisa suffered severe burns in a barbeque accident in May. Lisa said; “This is my first outing since my accident, and what an occasion! The Duchess was lovely. She was very interested in what had happened to me and was asking about the 45 minute flight to Swansea. I was very proud to be able to explain just what a difference the air ambulance had made for me. It was lovely to meet The Duchess as well as Paul Symonds one of a team of paramedics – both land crew and aircrew - who attended to me on the day.” Paul then presented The Duchess with a birthday present of a beautiful handcarved fruit plate made especially for the occasion by the Mid Cornwall Woodturners.
Transcript
The Sky’s the Limit!Summer 2013 | Issue 5
www.timesaveslives.comRegistered Charity 1133295
Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust
@Cornwallairamb
Cornwall Air Ambulance NewsletterCornwall Air Ambulance Trust, Trevithick Downs, Newquay, Cornwall TR8 4DY
Win A Car and help keep Cornwall Air Ambulance flying!This summer we are giving away a brand new Peugeot 107 Active 5 door as the top prize in our Summer Prize Draw! This amazing prize has been kindly donated by Hawkins Motor Group and is worth a whopping £10,000!
A Royal Occasion
You could be in with a chance of winning this wonderful prize and driving away in a brand new car for just £1 per ticket. Every ticket sold will help to keep Cornwall Air Ambulance flying.
Not only do we have a car as our first prize but we have other wonderful prizes on offer too!
Our second prize is a two night stay, including breakfast and a dinner, at The Rosevine on the stunning Roseland Peninsula. This secluded hotel is the perfect location for a weekend away from it all, relaxing in the comfy lounge and soaking up the ambiance of the tranquil Porthcurnick beach.
On offer for third prize is a VIP tour of Classic Air Force museum along with a scenic flight in one of their vintage aircraft. You’re sure to have a brilliant day out at this living aviation museum near Newquay and to top it off, imagine soaring high above the Cornish coastline in a classic aircraft!
You’ll be able to find us selling tickets at events across the County throughout the summer and you’re also able to buy them from your local Air Ambulance shop or by calling HQ.
Good luck!
We were very excited here at Cornwall Air Ambulance when we were invited to celebrate our Patron HRH The Duchess of Cornwall’s birthday with her and the Prince of Wales in Lostwithiel on their recent visit to Cornwall. Some of our star volunteers had a chance to talk to the Duchess about the invaluable work they do, as did two of our paramedics Stuart Croft and Paul Symonds, our Head of Fundraising Susie Smith, our Chief Executive Paula Martin and our Chairman Lady Mary Holborow.
The Duchess also spent a great deal of time talking to one of our airlifted patients Lisa Michell and her husband Steve. Lisa was recently airlifted to the specialist burns unit at Swansea’s Morriston Hospital after Lisa suffered severe burns in a barbeque accident in May. Lisa said; “This is my first outing since my accident, and what an occasion! The Duchess was lovely. She was very interested in what had happened to me and was asking about the 45 minute flight to Swansea. I was very proud to be able to explain just what a difference the air ambulance had made for me. It was lovely to meet The Duchess as well as Paul Symonds one of a team of paramedics – both land crew and aircrew - who attended to me on the day.”
Paul then presented The Duchess with a birthday present of a beautiful handcarved fruit plate made especially for the occasion by the Mid Cornwall Woodturners.
page 2 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
From the Chief Executive...Well what a difference a year makes. This time last year it was all doom and gloom as one fundraising event after another fell foul of the awful summer weather. Let’s hope this summer is a fantastic opportunity for the many worthy causes in Cornwall to catch up on lost ground, and for everyone to have a year of events to remember!
We can hardly think of September, when the children will have gone back to school, and the air ambulance charities across the UK hold the National Air Ambulance week (called ‘Fund a Flight Week’ here in Cornwall), running from Monday 23rd September to Sunday 29th September. But when we have to raise over £35,000 every single week to keep saving lives, forward planning is absolutely critical. So please, while you are having that BBQ with friends, and joining neighbours on the beach for the day at the weekend, and staying on after work with your friends to enjoy some social time, bring up the subject of doing something together for charity. Don’t worry if you have never tackled a charity fundraising event before, or taken on a personal challenge to raise funds for your favourite cause. Susie and her team are here to help you, and all you need is the seed of an idea and to pick up the phone, and you can help make our Fund a Flight week in September even bigger and better than it was last year.
I would like to take this opportunity to say a personal thank you to our dedicated team of South Western Ambulance Service paramedics. This summer we have all seen stories of terrible tragedies and accidents that have happened in Cornwall, especially on our roads. The professional dedication of the aircrew is something to behold, and sometimes we wonder how they cope with dealing with the most serious incidents in the county, day after day.
The fundraising team would also like to congratulate our very own Susie Smith, who was nominated, and then shortlisted into the top three, for the Institute of Fundraising Best Up and Coming Fundraiser in 2013. She didn’t win this national award, but we are delighted that her hard work as a charity fundraiser has been recognised in this way.
Finally another really important step forward is that our charity shops are soon to have a Gift Aid scheme operating on all of our donated goods, not just furniture as we do at the moment. This is really important, and we have listened to our donors who felt it was time that we offered them the chance to add gift aid on goods they have given us to sell in our shops. We took a little time to research and learn about the best way to introduce a gift aid system, and we hope to have this in all of our shops by the end of September.
Don’t forget – Fund a Flight Week!
Not once but twice!A BIG thank you to all of our supporters who either went in store or online to vote for us to be the charity of the year for Sainsbury’s in Truro for a second year running. As a consequence we have just found out that the store is going to continue to support us until May 2014 and we are absolutely over the moon!
Goodbye and good luck!Captain Pete McLelland joined Cornwall Air Ambulance in January 2007 having served as a Royal Marine Pilot flying Sea King and Lynx helicopters for 15 years. His experience of Search and Rescue flying set him in good stead for the often stressful situations encountered flying for an Air Ambulance. Pete has flown over 2,500 mission for CAAT, but now with heavy hearts we have to say goodbye! Pete is leaving CAAT and after a gruelling training regime (5 weeks in Florida!) he will be joining Bristow Helicopters to fly Sikorsky S92’s from Aberdeen transporting workers on and off rigs and flying Search & Rescue missions. We’d like to take this opportunity to say goodbye and Good Luck; we will all miss your pearls of wisdom!!
Pete said; “It’s been amazing being part of such an incredible life-saving service, using my flying skills to really make a difference to people’s lives.”
In the past year staff and customers have raised in excess of £22,000 for Cornwall Air Ambulance (equating to around 37 hours of flying!). From treadmill marathons to a family fun day, a staff Three Peaks Challenge and even putting the boss in the stocks, the staff and customers have really got behind the charity. Not to mention the 4,000 donation bags which customers have kindly filled and dropped off at the store – these donations alone could restock one of our smaller charity shops 8 times!
We are very much looking forward to working with Sainsbury’s again over the coming year. If you see us in store please do come and say hello!
page 3 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
10:00 EXETERSouth Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust Clinical Hub receives a 999 call from a distraught mum on Polzeath beach. Her 7 year old son has fallen whilst rock-pooling and has multiple injuries to his head and arms. The boy cannot move.
10:01 EXETERDue to the boy’s location and the possibility of spinal injuries, the dispatcher scrambles the Cornwall Air Ambulance.
10:01 NEWQUAYThe call alarm sounds at the Cornwall airbase. One paramedic takes the call, noting down the patient’s location and injuries. The pilot and second paramedic start the aircraft.
10:04 NEWQUAY Cornwall Air Ambulance is airborne. On the way, the first paramedic helps with navigation and communicates via radio with the clinical hub, on-scene emergency services and air traffic control. The second paramedic prepares for the patient.
10:10 POLZEATHThe pilot flies over the beach. RNLI Lifeguards have cleared the public away to safety and drawn a large ‘H’ in the sand. The helicopter lands on damp sand to minimise the sand blown by the downdraught.
10:10 POLZEATHThe crew arrive on-scene. Normally the engines are shut down, but on beaches the rotors stay running, so the pilot and one paramedic remain with the aircraft at all times. The other paramedic goes straight to the patient, who has a possible neck injury, a broken wrist, and serious cuts to his head.
10:20 POLZEATHAfter stabilising the boy, the paramedic and lifeguards transport him to the helicopter using a spinal board. As the patient is a child, his mother will accompany him to hospital. The paramedics continue to care for the child during the flight, and he receives a special teddy to calm him. The paramedics decide the boy’s injuries would be best treated at the specialist trauma centre at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth.
10:35 PLYMOUTH: After a 15 minute flight, the crew land at Derriford Hospital - a journey that would take around an hour by road. The paramedics update doctors on the child’s condition and are immediately back on standby for further calls.
10:57 PLYMOUTH After completing the handover, the paramedics take off for base. During the flight they will ready the cabin for the next mission, which could come at any time - even before they get back to Newquay.
11:15 NEWQUAY: On arrival at HQ, the crew immediately refuel the aircraft so it’s ready for the next mission at a moment’s notice. They restock any supplies used during the flight then head to the crew room for a quick cuppa - if another call for help doesn’t come in first!
A CALL FOR HELP:10 STEPS TO SAVE A LIFE
Saving Time, Saving Lives
Cornwall Air Ambulance provides a vital emergency medical service to the 500,000 inhabitants of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, as well as the 5 million visitors who flock here every year. With a population spread over 1,400 square miles, a poor major road network, and a remote natural landscape, we are kept busy responding to around 1,000 calls every year.
What happens during a typical emergency mission?
Newquay
Padstow
DerrifordHospital
6 minu
tes
15 minutes
page 4 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
WHAT WILL YOU DOTO KEEP CORNWALL AIR AMBULANCE FLYING
MONDAY 23RD - SUNDAY 29TH
SEPTEMBER 2013
Office • School • Pub • Home • College • Shop • Community Group • Friends
Coffee Morning • Fancy Dress • Sponsored Wax • Swear Jar • Lock up your boss
For Fund a Flight week 2012 you had some truly weird and wonderful fundraising ideas! From old favourites like coffee mornings and pub quizzes to more daring sponsored waxings, baked bean baths and sponsored job swaps - our wonderful supporters raised over £8,000!
This year we want the people of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to get involved and help raise even more to help keep YOUR air ambulance flying! It doesn’t matter how big or small your event is - every little helps!
We can provide you with collection buckets, t-shirts and posters to promote your event, so please call 01637 889926 or email [email protected] to tell us what you’ll do to help us Fund a Flight!
We want YOU to help make Fund a Flight Week 2013 bigger and better than ever!
page 5 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
Raising the RoofFor a second year running, over 150 of our supporters put on their glad rags and danced the night away in our hangar at our Summer Ball.
Guests from near and far came together to help support Cornwall Air Ambulance, from long term donors to local community groups to Cornish businesses, everyone had a fantastic time! Guests were treated to a three course meal and live entertainment from the wonderful 5 piece band DeciBelle and had a chance to have a flutter on the casino!
Half way through the evening our supporters had a chance to see our red and yellow helicopter up close and have their photo taken in front of it before dancing the night away to DJ Ade!
We would like to say a BIG thank you to our sponsors for the evening; Ann’s Cottage, AE Events and Bond and to the countless number of Cornish companies who supported us in all sorts of ways including donating items for our auction and raffle (kindly hosted by Jonathan and Bradley Start from Start and Co). We really could not put this event on without their backing and we are thrilled to report that the Ball made £10,000!
Keep your eyes peeled for information about next years event!
Cornish MPs have praised the work of the Cornwall Air Ambulance and pledged to help the service tackle some of the key issues facing it at the moment.Representatives from the charity met MPs at the reception of the new All Party Parliamentary Group on Air Ambulances at Westminster on Tuesday 11th June. Cornish MPs Andrew George and Stephen Gilbert attended the event on the Thames River Terrace, along with other MPs from across the country.
Cornwall Air Ambulance Chief Executive Paula Martin said: “We had the opportunity to discuss some of the big issues facing air ambulances nationally, such as the fact that many air ambulances pay VAT on fuel, a tax from which the RNLI is exempt. Both organisations save lives, and we hope a solution can be found to create a more level playing field.
“Our key issue locally is ensuring the landing facilities at the Major Trauma Unit at Derriford Hospital are fit for purpose for those patients flown straight to this specialist centre.”
Stephen Gilbert, Lib Dem MP for St Austell and Newquay, said: “I am now in communication with Derriford Hospital, and if the advice from them is that modernisation of the facility is the best way to secure the vital services of the Cornwall Air Ambulance into the future, then I will do all I can to help.”
Lord Howe, Parliamentary Under Secretary for the Department for Health assured charities that the Government would look into the feasibility of VAT rebates for services like air ambulances.
WHAT WILL YOU DOTO KEEP CORNWALL AIR AMBULANCE FLYING
MONDAY 23RD - SUNDAY 29TH
SEPTEMBER 2013
Office • School • Pub • Home • College • Shop • Community Group • Friends
Coffee Morning • Fancy Dress • Sponsored Wax • Swear Jar • Lock up your boss
For Fund a Flight week 2012 you had some truly weird and wonderful fundraising ideas! From old favourites like coffee mornings and pub quizzes to more daring sponsored waxings, baked bean baths and sponsored job swaps - our wonderful supporters raised over £8,000!
This year we want the people of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to get involved and help raise even more to help keep YOUR air ambulance flying! It doesn’t matter how big or small your event is - every little helps!
We can provide you with collection buckets, t-shirts and posters to promote your event, so please call 01637 889926 or email [email protected] to tell us what you’ll do to help us Fund a Flight!
We want YOU to help make Fund a Flight Week 2013 bigger and better than ever!
page 6 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
Thank you to everyone who has raised money or volunteered their time.
Jill Moseley, who for several years has been tirelessly knitting mini helicopters
and selling them with Creme eggs inside raising nearly £1,200!
Golf Captain of Carlyon Bay Golf Club, Jeremy Barnard who impressively raised over £4,500
throughout his year of captaincy.
Our long standing supporter Mary Phillips for conquering Lands End to Dunnet Head on her tractor travelling at 9
miles an hour. Truly inspiring! Find out more about Mary’s incredible journey at www.cornwallairambulancetrust.org/mary
The children and teachers at St Marys Catholic Primary School in Bodmin who
donned capes, wings and masks and raised £560 from their recent Superhero Day!
Holsworthy & District Lions Club who donated £500 from their Giant Easter Egg Draw.
Newquay Towan Blystra Lions who are again supporting Cornwall Air Ambulance - this
time through organising the Newquay Beer festival on 20-21st September. For tickets visit
www.cornwallairambulancetrust.org/newquaybeer
Everyone who came along to show their support at the Royal Cornwall Show helping
us raise £2,150. We even had a Royal visitor!
Di-Mar Machinery and Husqvarna for kindly donating a lawnmower and
strimmer worth almost £1,000 for us to maintain the grounds at the airbase.
Nigel Yeo who rode an impressive 1,000 miles from Roscoff to Santander
raising £2,288 for Cornwall Air Ambulance – smashing his £1,000 target!
Andrew Davey from St Aubyn Estates who cycled from John O’Groats to
Lands End raising over £3,000
The Freemasons in Cornwall who have raised £4,000 for Cornwall Air Ambulance.
Collectively the Freemasons have raised over £192,000 for air ambulance charities
throughout the rest of the UK which is just an astronomical achievement!
Jean Charlton who instead of presents for her birthday asked friends and family to donate to Cornwall Air Ambulance (Jean is also one of our star volunteers
in our St Austell shop!) raising £80.
page 7 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
Paramedic Mark treks 135 miles in world’s toughest ultra marathon
FOR Mark Fuszard, being a crewmember on the Cornwall Air Ambulance is not just a day job. He has also raised a staggering £14,056 to keep our lifesaving helicopter in the air.In March, Mark competed in the world’s toughest ultra marathon: The 6633 Arctic Ultra.The annual event sees athletes run 120 or 350 miles from Eagle Plains in the Yukon to the edge of the Arctic Ocean at Tuktoyaktuk. Along the way, Mark and his fellow adventurers crossed into the Arctic Circle, with temperatures regularly dropping below - 35°C. Participants are completely unsupported, having to pull all their own kit on a ‘pulk’ sledge and sleep by the side of the trail in bivvy bags. The event is so tough that only 10 people have ever made it to the end. Mark completed a remarkable 135 miles of the race, before he was forced to pull out of the race due to an excruciating leg injury. He managed to walk 20 miles with a ripped calf muscle before retiring at the remote town of Inuvik.Alongside the physical and mental challenge of the event itself, Mark raised over £10,000 for Cornwall Air Ambulance, hitting this target just hours before he started his race.Mark is no stranger to fundraising challenges, having completed the gruelling Namib Desert Ultra Marathon in 2012, running 220km in temperatures of over 40°C.” Altogether Mark has now raised over £22,000 for Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust.Mark said: “I can’t thank everyone enough for the support they gave me; it really got me through the challenge. I was sponsored by some wonderful local companies including Anns Cottage, Tregonning Ford, Steve’s Tattoos in Newquay, Nevisport, Sharps Brewery, Celtic Sheepskin, Penrose Outdoor and SurfPunk. The public really got behind me and gave so generously, and as ever my wife Nicky was an incredible source of help, love and support throughout everything I do.“To have raised over £14,000 for the charity I love is an incredible feeling. I don’t know where I go after this: the toughest race on the planet is going to take some beating!”
Why We Supported MarkAnns Cottage MD Rob Harris has a very personal reason for choosing to support Cornwall Air Ambulance“Our family’s life was turned upside down,” says Rob, recalling the day in 2003 when his daughter Sophie was involved in a near-fatal RTC near Polzeath and given just a 50% chance of survival.
The Cornwall Air Ambulance was on-scene within just six minutes of the 999 call being made, airlifting Sophie to Treliske Hospital and the specialist care she so desperately needed. Sophie spent nearly a year in hospital, but defied the bleak prognosis and although requiring 24 hour support is now taking small steps to make her life more independent.
Paramedic Mark Fuszard was one of the first people on-scene. “It took the helicopter less than ten minutes to get Sophie to Treliske, a journey that would have taken an hour by road. It’s remarkable that she’s recovered the way she has. Stories like this make the difficult aspects of being a paramedic worthwhile.”
Rob Harris said: “The accident made us stronger as a family, even more determined to make the most of every day, appreciating how fragile life can be. Rural Cornwall’s air ambulance is such a valuable resource and we’re so pleased to be in a position to support the charity that means so much to us.”
After supporting Mark’s 6633 challenge, Anns Cottage now support Cornwall Air Ambulance as a whole
page 8 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
A flying visit to the Isles of Scilly
Hi Everyone!
I met a pupil from the Isles of Scilly who asked
if I would come over and speak in their school
about the work of the Cornwall Air Ambulance!
After I arrived I spoke to Health Watch Scilly,
where it became apparent just how much the
people on the islands rely on the Cornwall Air
Ambulance and how much organisation goes into a
routine trip to hospital on the mainland.
The next day, I spoke to Radio Scilly about the work of the Cornwall Air
Ambulance on the islands, before heading to the Five Islands School.
I was met by Kerry and Sophie, two Year 7 pupils, who had organised my
visit. They were so keen to hear my talk that they sat right in the front row,
but when the opportunity arose to get dressed as a paramedic they politely
declined and let three boys do the honours!
After a lovely (school!) lunch it was back in the hall for the primary pupils
who were really keen to get involved, with the whole class having a go at
dressing up. The children see the helicopter quite a bit as they are only a
short distance from the airport and hospital.
It was then along the road to Craftikids Nursery, where I helped make
biscuits with the children before getting them role-playing as pilots and
paramedics.
On my final day, I was a guest at Park House care home, where I joined
residents and visitors for a cream tea and a chat. Quite a few people had
heard my interview on Radio Scilly, and talked to me about how I’d got
involved in the charity and when they have had to use the service themselves.
Scilly was great! I was looked after wonderfully by my hosts Jan and Sam
Guy, was driven around St Marys on a golf buggy, and even got invited up to
the bridge of the Scillonian III on my journey back – quite an experience for
a landlubber like me! Everyone was so generous in their time and support.
The beautiful scenery and clear air was breathtaking, as well as the
friendliness of the islanders. What struck me the most was that nearly
everyone I met had used or knew someone who had used the Cornwall Air
Ambulance. The islanders really have come to rely on this service, and in
return are incredibly passionate and dedicated in their fundraising efforts! Jack
ie x
Cornwall Air Ambulance
Trevithick Downs
Newquay, Cornwall
TR8 4DY
Volunteer and become part of ‘Team CAAT’!There are countless reasons why our 240 wonderful volunteers donate their time to Cornwall Air Ambulance and collectively help to save the charity £280,000 a year. Here are just a few of them:
• It is a chance to meet new people in the local community
•The satisfaction of knowing that you are helping to keep Cornwall’s Air Ambulance flying
•A chance to have a fun time and meet new friends
•The pride of being an ambassador for a well-loved local charity
• It looks great on your CV (many of our volunteers have gone on to get paid work)
• It is a chance to represent the charity at a whole array of interesting events in the county e.g. Steam Rallies, sporting events, Royal Cornwall Show and other community events
•Free coffee and tea (and maybe even a biscuit too!)
And if you want or need it we are able to offer our volunteers training, for example in customer service, cash handling, manual handling and many other similar courses.
No matter what your interests, hobbies or strengths are there will be a perfect volunteering role for you at the charity. For example, if you fancy
volunteering in one of our shops then we are after people to help serve customers, sorting and pricing donations, PAT testing and window dressing. If you prefer computers to tills then we are always after support in the office – from answering phones, database inputting, helping with mail merges – we need all hands on deck! If you like to get out and about then we are also after volunteers to help with cheque collections, attend events on our behalf, marshalling, raffle ticket selling etc. –the list is endless!
Please contact Jackie on 01637 889926 for a chat or to apply for an information pack.
page 9 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
Saving the Best till last... well that is unless we find another great location in Cornwall!Welcome to the latest addition to the Retail Shops – St Austell Superstore! It’s been worth the wait, the volunteers and staff at the shop have worked their socks off to paint, stock and get the shop ready to trade.
Clifden Road is our second superstore and offers all the stock you would expect from a charity shop plus second hand furniture for every room in the home! So if you know anyone that needs a helping hand to set up home on a shoestring, or if you just fancy a change of sofa then pop down and grab yourself a bargain or two.
A plea for your help to save lives in the futureFor many years it has been the case that nearly 1 in 3 emergency flights have been funded by someone deciding to leave Cornwall Air Ambulance a gift in their Will. In the first 6 months of the year, we would usually have received around £550,000 in legacy gifts and this has been the case for many years. However this year our legacy gifts have fallen dramatically, and so far the charity has received £107,000. While this is a substantial sum, it is also a substantial drop and the charity is appealing to anyone about to make or change their Will, to consider leaving a legacy gift to help the air ambulance do its vital lifesaving work in future years. We cannot emphasise how crucial it is that people help us now, to make sure we can help others in the future.
We urgently need people to act on reading this newsletter and anyone wanting to visit us and find out more about how their legacy gift would help save lives is urged to please contact the Chief Executive Paula Martin on 01637 889926 for a private and confidential conversation.
Also please do not forget that we are happy to collect your unwanted goods, no matter how large and small. Just call 01209 612404 to arrange a collection.
Sharp’s BreweryThe avid readers amongst you will already know that Sharp’s Brewery have supported Cornwall Air Ambulance for several years to the value of £3,500 through our events and have more recently supported paramedic Mark Fuszard by making a donation towards a vital tracking device for his polar challenge in March.
However Sharp’s have set their sights even higher and have pledged to raise £10,000 between now and the end of the year by donating 5p from the sale of each pint of Sharp’s Own, Sharp’s Special and Cornish Coaster in the county.
So next time you fancy a pint congratulate yourself on also helping to keep Cornwall’s air ambulance flying (obviously we promote the message of enjoying alcohol responsibly) Cheers!!
page 10 | Summer 2013 | Issue 5
One of our star volunteers Mary
By her own admission, Mary is a person of the community. She likes tending her garden, going for walks and just doing the general stuff that life throws at her. When she retired from working at the Lloyds Pharmacy in Saltash she wanted to devote some of her free time to volunteering. The Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust shop in Saltash seemed to be a nice friendly place which had a great camaraderie amongst the other volunteers. Mary has had such a great experience that she can now oversee the running of the shop when the manager takes time off, which is no small feat in this bustling environment. The skills that she developed in her working life are being used to full effect and in her supportive manner, Mary gets the job done.
Would you like to Volunteer at one of our charity shops? If so please call Jackie on 01637 889926 ext. 101 to find out how you can donate the gift of time!
Events Calendar 2013August
22nd Air Ambulance Day, Land’s End
23rd - 24th Music in the Market, Hallworthy Cattle Market
24th Perranarworthal Cricket Club Fun Day
24th - 26th Morval Vintage Rally
September
1stCornish Mini Club Charity Cruise, Indian Queens to Veryan
7thRAF St Mawgan 70th Anniversary Proms in the Park
7th Charity Evening at Newquay British Legion
8thFamily Fun Day at the Royal Standard Inn, Gerrans, Portscatho
14th – 15th Healing Light Festival, Heartlands
20th – 21st Newquay Beer Festival , Hendra Holiday Park
23rd – 29th Fund a Flight week, various events, everywhere!
For more info about any of our events, please contact the fundraising team at Charity HQ on 01637 889926.
If you’re putting on an event in support of Cornwall Air Ambulance, we are here to help! We can supply collection
buckets, stickers, banners, posters and loads more.
We can help promote your fundraising event too. Just go to: www.cornwallairambulancetrust.org/yourevent
And don’t forget our Kilimanjaro trek which takes place from the 11th – 22nd September.
Well done to our 31 participants who have already raised a whopping £53,000
Did You Know...?Every bag of goods you donate to Cornwall Air Ambulance brings in an average of £30 for the charity!
We are always very grateful to receive donations of unwanted clothes, furniture, bric-a-brac and electrical items. We can even collect larger items from you!
You can also drop off your donations at any of our charity shops or at the collection points at Wilkinsons St Austell, Redruth and Falmouth and Sainsbury’s Truro.
I would like to make a single donationI enclose a cheque payable to “Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust’ for
c £5 c £30 c £100 c other £
Gift Aid: I confirm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities or Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for that tax year. I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand the charity will reclaim 28p of tax on every £1 that I gave up to April 2008 and will reclaim 25p of tax on every £1 that I give on or after 6 April 2008.
Please treat as Gift Aid donations all qualifying gifts of money made:
c Today c In the past 4 years c In the future
Please tick all boxes you wish to apply.
Name and full home address:
Signature: Date:
Please notify us if you wish to cancel this declaration, change your details or no longer pay sufficient tax.
I would like to make a regular donationTo: The Manager, Bank or Building Society
Address:
Postcode: Name/s of Account Holder/s:
Bank/Building Society Account Number / Sort Code
ref:
Amount to be debited £ (in words)
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For Charity Use Only:Please donate to Beneficiary Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust, Registered Charity 1133295. Bank name and address: HSBC, 3 Fore Street, Bodmin, Cornwall PL31 2HUAccount Number Sort Code
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Please return to us at: Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust, Trevithick Downs, Newquay TR8 4DY
I would like to make a donation and help to save lives in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
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Stuart said; “It was so emotional to be able to meet Caleb’s family. They are truly remarkable people with fantastic support around them. The Cornwall Air Ambulance is essential to get patients to specialist care which, from Cornwall, is sometimes many hours away by road. For Caleb we were able to land metres from his house and get him from the scene to Treliske within 6 minutes and to Frenchay within 55 minutes, offering him the best care available. It was so humbling to see the enthusiasm and the gratitude of Caleb’s family and how in their time of tragedy they found energy and time to raise money to make sure that the Cornwall Air Ambulance is ready and available to help someone else.”
Since then the family have organised several other events and have already raised £5,475.13 with the money still coming in. Dawn said; “I know our outcome with Caleb was not the one that we all hoped for, but without the aid of Cornwall’s Air Ambulance that day, I would never have been given the greatest gift, which was the time that myself and my family could spend with Caleb to say our goodbyes. That reason alone is why I am so passionate about raising money and awareness for Cornwall’s Air Ambulance team. I hope it’s enough to make a difference and will help to save another person’s life.”
In loving memoryOn Friday 7th December 2012 tragedy struck. It started like any other day, with 11 year old Caleb Hollow saying goodbye to his mum Dawn and making his way to school. Within 5 minutes of Caleb leaving the house, Dawn received a knock at the door that every parent dreads, from a lady crying and trying to say Caleb’s name. Caleb had been hit by a car and suffered a serious head injury. Cornwall Air Ambulance was dispatched and flew Caleb to Treliske Hospital. The helicopter
waited on the helipad whilst he received essential treatment, before flying Caleb and a doctor to the specialist Neurosurgery unit at Frenchay Hospital in Bristol. Although the team at the Frenchay Hospital in Bristol did all they could to help Caleb, his injuries were too severe and he passed away peacefully 6 days later, with his family at his bedside.
Ever since that dreadful day, Caleb’s family have really pulled together and focused their attention on fundraising for the charity as a way to draw a positive out of such a dreadful situation. What started as a one-off fundraising event (a sponsored head shave and waxing evening at the Bird in Hand, Hayle) has snowballed, with all of Caleb’s friends and family coming together to raise thousands for the charity. At the first fundraising event the family met paramedic Stuart who (along with paramedic Amy Sainsbury) attended to Caleb after the accident. Caleb’s Aunt Audrey, who has been paramount in all of the fundraising, said; “All I can say after meeting Stuart is that he is a really lovely person and that Caleb could not have been in safer hands, than if they were God’s that day.”
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Caleb’s Great grandmother Lillian, Paramedic Stuart Croft and Caleb’s mum Dawn at one of the family’s
fundraising events
Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust Trevithick Downs Newquay Cornwall TR8 4DY
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Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust will not pass your details to any other organisation. If you already receive information from Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust we will continue to send it unless you tell us otherwise by writing to Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust, Trevithick Downs, Newquay, Cornwall TR8 4DY.
Summer 2013 | Issue 5
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