A LOCAL woman has started a community fund to raise money for new defibrillators for Bowerhill.
Chris Hardy, a retired nurse who has lived in Bowerhill since 1989 has started fundraising for new automated external defibrillators (AED) to help increase the chances of survival in case of emergency.
She aims to have defibrillators readily available in both the residential area of Bowerhill and in the industrial estate. Currently, there is one defibrillator housed at Melksham Motor Spares on Lancaster Road in the industrial estate. Chris has already started the fundraising after recently hosting a small craft fair at her home which raised £54.60 and she is planning more events to reach the target. Each defibrillator is expected to cost around £1,500 and it is hoped the community will support the fundraising effort to help reach the target sooner.
Chris said, “The reason I started this fund is that a community 24-hour access defibrillator saves lives. The statistics are that sudden cardiac arrests in the community have only a one in ten survival rate, but having the use of AED before medical aid arrives increases to four in ten.
“I would like two more AEDs in Bowerhill, one for the industrial area and one hopefully by The Pilot or Tesco. I would also like to raise awareness for this vital piece of equipment that saves lives.
“Three years ago my husband Ken had severe chest pain and subsequently has a coronary heart stent in situ. Heart disease had an immediate effect on our family and we want to improve the chances of survival. The fund started this month, and kicked off with a small craft fair and I have a designated building society account with Coventry for the community fund.”
“The plan is to hold further craft fairs in November; no dates as yet. Donations are requested. If every household in Bowerhill gave just £1 we would achieve our target”
Contact Chris for information or to donate by calling 01225 709874 or email keyhealth@onetel.com.
