Published Date:
28 March 2008
FRIDAY 3PM: Our angel of the skies will become fully operational on Tuesday, thanks to the hard work put in by you.
The helicopter has been given its livery, the staff have completed their training and the spot at East Midlands Airport has been reserved, ready for the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance to fly its first mission.
Regional fundraiser Barbara Parish said: "It will be an exciting time when it flies its first mission. And for the person it rescues it will be great, without it there would be nothing.
"It is a fantastic thing what you all have done and a huge thank you to everyone who has helped raise the money."
From 8am on Tuesday, our yellow and blue knight will be ready and waiting for the first emergency call.
Unlike many air ambulance services, this one has a doctor on board, greatly increasing the chances of survival of any victim.
At the last count, the money Melton Times readers have raised is more than £15,000, smashing our £10,000 target in a little under 10 weeks.
And with cash still coming in we could double the final sum.
But of course, the service still needs money to operate, even when we wind up our appeal.
At an average of £1,000 a 'shout' or call-out, the air ambulance costs £1.5m a year and gets no Government funding or Lottery grants, relying entirely on charitable donations.
It is now possible to give regularly and Barbara is asking for just £2 a month. If everyone in the borough gave that modest sum, we would almost cover the cost of this essential service.
But if you cannot spare that amount, help can be given in time or kind or you could even leave something in your will.
Volunteers are needed at events to represent the charity or run tombolas, while businesses can sponsor the charity.
Barbara said: "You really can't stress enough how important this service is and the smallest donation counts as much as the largest, we just want lots of people to get on board."
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Last Updated:
28 March 2008 2:53 PM
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Source:
n/a
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Location:
Melton
