Our February meeting was held on 14 February. We were joined by friends and partners at the Panmure Arms Hotel for a very pleasant evening.
Our speaker for the evening was Duncan Smedley a fund raising volunteer with the SCOTTISH CHARITY AIR AMBULANCE.
The charity was established in 2013 when one of the present trustees returned from Australia and had seen the success of the Flying Doctors. Along with business friends and companies he along with appropriate agencies helped to fund the lease of a helicopter based in Scone. Initially this cover was for emergency calls for 10 hours a day, 365 days of the year. But in 2015 the charity was awarded £3 million from the Libor Fund (The London Inter-Bank Offered Rate). This enabled the charity to lease a larger helicopter which facilitated patient space and an additional medical person on board. In 2017 a second helicopter was leased and based in Aberdeen. The helicopters are now available 12 hours a day and 365 days of the year. They also operate two rapid response vehicles for use when helicopters are grounded.
In 2022 the SCAA responded to 967 emergency call outs. They can be airborne within 5 minutes of receiving a call and can reach 90% of the population within 25 minutes. Operational costs to break even are £5 million. So the SCAA rely heavily on fundraising and donations, as well as events supported by the Corporate Partners.
On Saturday, 4 March at 10am we are holding our Coffee Mornig/Bazaar in the Masonic Hall. Coffee will be served. There is also cake and vegetable stalls, a raffle and the Rotary Club kindly assist with a bottle stall. All are welcome – please come along. We will be pleased to see you.
Frances Wallace
Club Correspondent
