08 August 2012
NEC Group CEO, Paul Thandi, has this week visited Midlands Air Ambulance base at Strensham to present the County Air Ambulance Trust with a cheque for almost £15,000. This marks the end of a successful year of fundraising by The NEC Group, who elected County Air Ambulance Trust as its Charity of the Year for 2011/12.
After being chosen by employees as the Group’s chosen charity, County Air Ambulance Trust received a final donation of £14,643.00, which has gone towards the improvement of the Midlands airbase; one of three bases that the Trust supports. The money was raised through a series of fundraising activities across the year; from bake sales and ‘dress down Fridays’ to contributions from NEC Group staff ticket sales.
Whilst presenting the Trust with the final cheque, Paul Thandi, said:
“It is a real honour to be invited down to the Strensham airbase and see the lifesaving work that they do first hand. The air ambulances provide an important service to the region and help to save and change countless lives, flying over 2,000 missions every year. Today we have been able to see just how much the money raised by The NEC Group means to the charity and what they have been able to achieve with it. Meeting the team and seeing their new-and-improved site has been a pleasure and I’m glad that we could help make it happen.”
Based at Strensham Services, the Midlands Air Ambulance site has seen vast improvements over the past few months, including the renovation of the offices and staff living quarters that had previously not been touched since their original construction 15 years ago. With the help of The NEC Group contribution, the air ambulance crew now has a fully-equipped office space, secure equipment storage, and a living room and kitchen area.
Midlands Air Ambulance and Great Western Air Ambulance are supported by the County Air Ambulance Trust, which is the region’s oldest independent air ambulance charity. Launched in 1993, the Trust provides grants for operational costs and infrastructure projects like this latest one at the Strensham site.
Robert Bertram, Charity Director at the Trust added to Paul’s comments: “We are extremely grateful for this outstanding contribution for the refurbished airbase at Strensham from The NEC Group. This money has helped replace the fifteen year old previous accommodation and provide far better facilities for the crew who spend everyday on life-saving missions. It is contributions like this that allow us to keep supporting these bases.”