Up, up, and away

A fund to support the Westpac Rescue Helicopter to fly missions into South Canterbury has taken off, with a fundraising drive this month. The South Canterbury Air Rescue and Air Ambulance Fund was established last year and the community fund is a partnership between the Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust (CWCART) and the Aoraki Foundation.Individuals, families, and businesses can contribute directly to the fund, which will be invested for the future benefit of air rescue services in the region.

Westpac has been a long-time national supporter of the rescue helicopter and when South Canterbury branch manager Debbie-Lee Keyes heard about the dedicated fund to support the helicopter in the region, she knew staff would be keen to support it. “Supporting the Westpac Rescue Helicopter is in our blood, and we have always been very active in fundraising for the national chopper appeal. “We have always had a strong base of supporters in South Canterbury and the geographical nature of the terrain, from coastline to mountains, explains why the Westpac Rescue Helicopter is so highly valued in this community” Marshall said. “We completed 165 missions last year in this region alone, and with a flight time of only 40 minutes to Christchurch Hospital, this really is a life-saving service”.

When the fund was launched last year it gained immediate support from a long-standing South Canterbury trust, the St Vianney’s Timaru Trust, which contributed $50,000 as a seed donor to the fund. The St Vianney’s Trust was established when the Sisters of Compassion sold the Morgans Rd, Home of Compassion. Trust chairman Dale Walden said “we are delighted to continue the work the sisters started in our community, which was always for those in need’’.

“The Westpac Rescue Helicopters answer that call in extreme times of need, and we are very grateful for this lifeline in our community.”

Anyone wanting to find out more about the fund can contact the Aoraki Foundation.