Vauxhall recruits bear for Air Ambulance
Trauma Ted, the East Anglian Air Ambulance Bedfordshire division’s latest recruit, visited Vauxhall Motors’ headquarters in Luton to say ‘thank you’ for bringing him into the county.
Trauma Ted recently completed his studies at The Trauma Bear Training School in Bavaria to be able to work alongside the fundraising team of the East Anglian Air Ambulance based in Flitwick, Bedfordshire. Standing over 2 metres tall, this gentle giant hopes that his presence at events, gala’s and fete’s throughout the County will bring lots of attention to the charity, and of course help fund the life saving missions which the air ambulances carry out on a daily basis.
Area Fundraising Manager Paul Airton said “I am delighted that Trauma Ted has joined our Bedfordshire office to help raise the funds needed to keep our air ambulances flying. Teddy bears, or Trauma Bears as we call them, are carried by all air ambulances to try and help young casualties relax a little whilst the medics treat them in the helicopters en route to hospital. I am very grateful to our corporate sponsors Vauxhall for helping us with this fantastic addition to our fundraising team.”
Already facing a hectic schedule, Trauma Ted is hoping to see as much of the County this year as he can. The charity has just invited local schools to help raise funds with a ‘Funky Footwear Day’ and Trauma Ted is looking forward to visiting those schools as well as taking part in many Vauxhall events.
Cherie Denton, Vauxhall’s Community Relations Officer, said: “Vauxhall has supported the air ambulance for the last four years and this new recruit will hopefully bring much needed funds to this important charity.”
Despite receiving no direct government funding, the East Anglian Air Ambulance operates two helicopters, 365 days per year, across Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk and needs to raise £4.2million a year to maintain the service. It has worked in partnership with the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) in developing the service, which operates from Norwich and Cambridge Airports.
