Cornwall’s Search and Rescue Team are celebrating after raising a fantastic £12,000 over the past year – enough to purchase a new Land Rover Ambulance. 

A ‘pint and a pasty’ presentation evening was held at the St Austell Brewery Visitor Centre on November 15 to celebrate the team’s fundraising efforts and thank some of the major charitable contributors. 

The money raised during the past 12 months has enabled Cornwall Search and Rescue to not only buy a brand new Land Rover Ambulance for the East of Cornwall, but to also totally refurbish its existing Land Rover and upgrade its control van to carry more specialised rescue equipment.

Cornwall Search and Rescue Team Chairman Tim Hughes said: “We originally set a fundraising goal of £6,000, and were truly humbled when after only 12 months we had doubled that and raised £12,000. It is thanks to the generosity of so many organisations and individuals that we have been able to achieve all this, and that is why we decided to host this event, simply to say thank you.”

The keys to the vehicles were handed over by Kate Waddams, representing Pete’s Dragons, a local organisation that has been helping with the fundraising for Cornwall Search and Rescue.

Pete’s Dragons was set up in memory of Peter Wicks, a young man whom the team searched for, to thank and support the people and agencies which had helped his family and friends. In the past year they have taken part in a series of fundraising events, including the Great British Bike Ride 2010.

Accepting the keys, Cornwall Councillor David Hughes said, “The majority of the work that Cornwall Search and Rescue Team does goes un-noticed which is why I am so pleased to support their work in our County.  While they do not have the profile of some of the larger emergency charities, I am sure that this achievement will allow the Team to respond to incidents throughout Cornwall more rapidly.” 

Jo Bond from the St Austell Brewery Charitable Trust said: “The work carried out by the Cornwall Search and Rescue Team is vitally important, especially in rural areas of the county. Supporting local good causes is just as important to the Charitable Trust as fundraising for better known charities and we were more than happy to donate £1,000 and host the presentation evening to show our support.” 

The St Austell Brewery Charitable Trust has raised a massive £280,000 since it was started in 2003, and is on target to the reach the £300,000 mark by Christmas. 

Money is raised by individual pubs and employees through events such as darts tournaments, sponsored walks and quizzes, plus the annual Celtic Beer Festival in November.

The major donors to the Cornwall Search and Rescue Team included St Austell Brewery Charitable Trust, Pete’s Dragons, Mounts Bay Rotary Club, Sgt Capp and the 999 Day at the Eden project, South West Water, Western Power, RAOB Rock Lodge, Rock View Vets and a number of local councillors.