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MENDIP TIMES
Festival figurehead sings for hospice
Taya Minchington
Gardens to open in aid of air ambulance
Michael Eavis on stage
MICHAEL Eavis and his band Grasier lent their support to a charity concert at Faulkland in aid of Dorothy House Hospice. The Glastonbury Festival figurehead sang a number of wellknown standards to a sold-out barn at the Tucker’s Grave Inn. They joined Karl Ficarotta, Taya Minchinton, Rave to the Grave and local favourites Avalon Highway at the event, organised by music promoter Mike Mihalas, who runs the community interest company Music Expo UK.
DORSET and Somerset Air Ambulance has announced the launch of its Blossoming and Blooming open gardens initiative, which asks people to show their support by opening their gardens to members of the public between June and September. It says the initiative provides a fantastic opportunity for people to hold a special event within their local community in aid of the air ambulance, which relies on the generosity of the public to help raise their operational costs of over £5 million per year. Fundraising manager, Emma Jones, “We believe that spending time outdoors with nature is essential for our health and wellbeing. That is why we are asking people to open their gates, share the love of their garden, whilst raising funds for us.”
Details: www.dsairambulance.org.uk/open-gardens fundraising@dsairambulance.org.uk 01823 669604
Air ambulance kept busy
Avalon Highway after their barnstorming set
Michael with Sarah and Mike Mihalas, Sarah was celebrating her 60th birthday PAGE 42 • MENDIP TIMES • MARCH 2022
GREAT Western Air Ambulance Charity (GWAAC) has announced that 2021 was its second busiest year on record. The Critical Care Team received a total of 1,964 call-outs to incidents across the region which includes North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Gloucestershire and parts of Wiltshire. The most significant increase in incidents was to children and teenagers in urgent need. In 2021, 14% of GWAAC’s total call-outs were to children and teenagers; dispatches to this age group doubled from preceding years. In North Somerset, 14% of missions were to a child or teenager in need. One mum, Becky, said: “If it wasn’t for this fabulous team, Alfie would not be with us today.” The increasing demand for GWAAC’s service means the charity needs to raise over £4 million a year to remain operational, yet it receives no day-to-day funding from the Government or National Lottery, relying on the generosity and support from local communities. Details: www.gwaac.com
