An Aberdeenshire rotary club has donated thousands of pounds to Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA).
The Rotary Club of Inverurie raised £7,500 for the charity at a recent event and handed over the donation during a visit to the Aberdeen hangar on Wednesday.
Members, including president Bill Duncan and George Ross, met pilots and paramedics during a tour to find out about their vital life-saving work.
Howard Hughes, from the rotary club, said: “About a dozen of us visited today and found out that SCAA totally relies on charity donations.
“They get no help from the government, not a dime. This was a shock to everyone.
“The pilots and medical staff are all very experienced people, who have to turn their hands to many things and get to the places others can’t get to. When you speak to the people involved, you see the level of commitment. It’s fantastic.
“It was interesting to learn how things are prioritised and how they save lives when speed is of the essence.
“We hope to support them more in the future, especially after seeing how they work firsthand.”
Reliant on community support
The rotary club’s decision to support SCAA stemmed from some of their past work in the Inverurie area – including a hillwalker’s rescue on Bennachie two years ago.
Former president Ian Mathers had also shared that some of his friends had been in a situation which involved an air ambulance call-out.
“It’s a very good charity to support that local people are benefiting from,” Mr Hughes said.
“We’re fortunate to have an air ambulance stationed in Aberdeen that covers the north. Huge distances are involved.
“Now we have seen the scale of the operation as well, and know they are totally reliant on support from the community – the people of Scotland, as it says on the helicopter – we want to encourage others to support too.”
The money donated to SCAA today was raised at the rotary club’s Wag of Wags Dinner 2022, which was held at the Lochter Activity Centre in Oldmeldrum in April.
The Wags must entertain the crowd for 12 minutes with a talk on their subject of choice.
The event runs on a four-year cycle with all the winners competing against each other in the fifth year to become the Wag of Wags.
This year’s winner was the “exceptionally funny” Debbie Leslie, from Inverurie, who received the most votes in the secret ballot for her chosen topic: “There’s nae luck aboot this hoose, there’s nae luck ava”.
“It’s always a good night, it’s a wonderful event,” Mr Hughes added.
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