Park lands charity windfall for Air Ambulance

Guests and staff at an Ambleside holiday park have provided a £1,500 lift to the fund-raising efforts of the Great North Air Ambulance Service.

Skelwith Fold Caravan Park held a series of events throughout 2011 for the charity, which it has supported for many years.

They included the park's annual arts exhibition, which attracts hundreds of entries from park guests, including paintings, photographs and poetry.

Also contributing to the charity coffers was the sale to park visitors of guided walks in the area, written by two of Skelwith Fold's holiday home owners.

The total brought in by the events was £750, which was then matched by the park to achieve the £1,500 total handed over recently to the Great North Air Ambulance Service.

The service relies entirely on public donations to continue its life-saving work across an area of 8,000 square miles, with Cumbria at its heart.

Its helicopters can be anywhere within the region in fifteen minutes, bringing medical help to patients in locations varying from motorways to mountain tops.

Skelwith Fold director Henry Wild, who is himself a helicopter pilot, said the park's relatively remote location in rural Cumbria meant it felt a special affinity with the work of the air-ambulance service.

“Many of our guests enjoy fell-walking on their visits, and we are always conscious of that fact that if any got into difficulties, the air-ambulance would be a potential life-saver,” Henry explained.

“The service needs four million pounds a year to continue responding to the hundreds of call-outs it receives every month, and which give patients their best chance of recovery.

“Our guests also appreciate this, and their support has been magnificent."

Special tribute was paid by Henry to Skelwith Fold holiday home owners who have given up their time to help organise the various fundraising activities, including Jean Sandham, Pat Ballantine, Bob Andrews, Ken and Barbara Bailey, Christine Neal and Tony and Wendy Carroll.

• For more info, tel: 01539 432277, web: www.skelwith.com.

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