Shelley Ormsby saw the Become A Heart Saver competition on GrownUps.co.nz and immediately thought of the Raglan Community Vehicle Trust, which her husband Kevin is chairman of.
“The Trust was set up to transport people to Hamilton for medical appointments, including people who are in wheelchairs or who otherwise would have no other way to travel to Hamilton for their care,” Shelley explains. “We also take elderly groups from the local Trust Hospital out for a fun outing. A volunteer base of drivers drive this vehicle every work day, supported by a team of people from Raglan Community House, Raglan Trust Hospital and Rest Home.”
The Trust also relies on volunteers to run the rosters and sit as Treasurer and Chairman. We love the community spirit involved here!
Last year 530 people used the Raglan Community Vehicle Trust for transport, many of them with significant health issues.
It’s over 43km to drive from Raglan to Hamilton and Shelley explains that a lot of the trip is many minutes away from medical assistance, with marginal phone reception. We agreed that the Raglan Community Vehicle Trust was a worthy recipient of an AED, much to Shelley and Kevin’s delight.
“Having an AED on hand will be invaluable in the event of anyone in the van suffering from a medical complications,” she says. “Thank you so much for your generosity. It means a lot to volunteer groups such as our own to know we are appreciated and have support to the extent you have shown.”
“This AED will give our drivers more confidence should there be an incident while transporting patients. As our drivers are all volunteers and medical knowledge is limited, so ease of use of the AED is fantastic. And of course there’s the possibility of coming across an accident or incident, given the distance travelled daily on what can be a challenging tourist routes, so to have the AED mobile and available will add a vital tool for the community at large.”
