On Friday 19th February 2010, we received a very kind and thoughtful £100.00 donation from the residents and friends of Westpark, Westgate Avenue, Bolton, raised at their coffee morning club.
Our Team Leader at the time of the donation extended to all at Westpark an invitation to visit our Ladybridge Hall Base / HQ at some point in the future.
This afternoon their visit took place, with some very nice ladies of Westpark coming along to our Base / HQ alongside the Manager of Westpark, Kathryn Hollinworth, and two representatives from Goldsborough Estates, a member of the BUPA group. (Annette Elliott, Commercial Manager and her colleague Maria Elliott).
On hand to meet our visitors were Team Leader Garry Rhodes MBE, Training Officer Elaine Gilliland, Call Out list member Matthew Hailwood (our youngest team member) and Trainee Team Member Steve O’Hara.
During the ladies visit, former team call out list member (now retired from the team) Jim Wareing on a ’surprise’ visit to us whilst back in the home country for a spell from his Spanish home, set in chain some co-incidences, which for once turned the table on Jim, well known when a team member (and whilst a long serving Emergency Ambulanceman with GMAS as was, before his retirement) as a ’bit of a character.’
It turned out that Kathryn the Manager of Westpark, knew Jim very well (though it took Jim a wee while to remember who she was!) as Kathryns husband had served alongside Jim in the Greater Manchester Ambulance Service, and they had been great friends.
Another surprise for Jim was that one of the lady visitors from Westpark also knew Jim from a very long time ago, for her husband had also served in the Ambulance Service, and had been the Ambulanceman who had taken a young Jim under his wing when Jim first joined the Ambulance Service.
All the ladies, Kathryn and Annette and Maria asked many questions of our four members present (and Jim) and were amazed at the wide variety of incidents we are involved in.
At the conclusion of their visit they surprised our four team members present with a series of donations.
Firstly matching the original £100.00 donation from Westpark, was a £100.00 donation from BUPA Community Connections via Goldsborough Estates, handed over to the team by Annette Elliott and Maria Elliott.
Then one of the ladies present from Westpark, Dorothy Bolton, handed over a very kind and thoughtful £65.00 donation, arising from donations to the team in lieu of presents at her recent 80th Birthday, so a big Happy 80th Birthday to you Dorothy from all the team membership, and a very big thankyou for thinking of us in this kind way.
Another lady present at the visit to our Base / HQ from Westpark then made an impromptu donation of £10.00 to the team.
Finally on behalf of Florence Berry from Westpark, who could not attend todays visit, Kathryn Hollinworth handed over a much appreciated £5.00 donation to the team.
With photographs taken, the days visit ended with smiles all round, and big thanks to our supporters at Westpark and BUPA (Goldsborough Estates).
