The Great Western Air Ambulance Charity, known as GWAAC, has received a large donation of £250,000 from the John James Bristol Foundation, to go towards the purchase of their new air base.
The John James Bristol Foundation is a grant making trust which gives donations to charities which are making a difference to residents in Bristol, and this year they have chosen to donate a large sum to the air ambulance, which provides services across Bath & North East Somerset, and surrounding areas.
GWAAC launched an appeal in July to raise funds to buy a new purpose-built air base, which has just been constructed in Almondsbury.
GWAAC’s landlords, who built the new Almondsbury air base, have offered the charity the opportunity to buy the new base, which will secure their future as a charity and the service to local residents.
Kate Baldwin, Trusts and Grants Fundraising Coordinator for GWAAC, said: “At the charity we are delighted to receive this incredibly generous donation from the John James Bristol Foundation.
“This will have a huge impact on GWAAC. We are so grateful for the donation and really can’t thank them enough.”
Anna Perry, Chief Executive, said “The GWAAC medical team are so excited to be moving into the new base. It is going to make such a difference to the service we can provide, as the building will allow us to improve our training, as well as increase the welfare facilities available to our hard working crew.
“Taking the next step and securing a permanent home for our charity would be the perfect way to celebrate our 10th birthday year in 2018. Our thanks goes to the John James Bristol Foundation for their support.”
Thanks to donations such as that from John James, GWAAC are closer to reaching their target of £1.25 million to be able to buy the base.
The charity is funded entirely by donations from the public and trusts such as John James. They receive no day to day funding from the Government or National Lottery, so this donation really is vital.
John James Bristol Foundation, said: “The Trustees of the John James Bristol Foundation are delighted to be able to provide a Grant to GWAAC to support their purchase of a new airbase which will provide them stability and certainty for the future.”
You can find out more about GWAAC and their Buy Our Base campaign here.
