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He spends every day helping people, but a Bristol emergency care assistant went a step further by running the London Marathon for his local air ambulance.
Andy Bell, who is an emergency care assistant with the South Western Ambulance Service, laced up his trainers and took on the 26 mile course for the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity. He achieved an impressive time of 3 hours, 56 minutes and 48 second and has so far raised over £2000. Andy said:
“It was inspirational to say the least, a world class event which shows the good of humanity from all corners of the world. I aimed for a time, but half way I realised that I may not make it, as it was warmer than I’d like which definitely had an impact. I decided that I needed to enjoy the experience and remember why I was competing in such an exclusive event. The support from the cheering spectators and other runners spurred me on to finish in a good time.”
GWAAC is the local air ambulance for Bristol, Gloucestershire, Bath and North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset and parts of Wiltshire, and receives no day to day funding from the Government or National Lottery. They depend on the support of the public to raise the £2.6million needed each year to stay operational. GWAAC Head of Fundraising and Marketing Emma Carter said:
“The London Marathon is the most widely recognised marathon, and it was great to have Andy running it for us. This is the first time we have had a runner in this event. His time is very impressive, and so is the amount that he has raised. On average each of our life-saving missions costs £2,000, so Andy has potentially helped us to save a life.”
There is still time to sponsor Andy by clicking here. If you have been inspired by this story why not take on a challenge to keep your air ambulance flying? Find out more here.
