Northamptonshire local raises over £5,000 to support lifesaving charity

Karen Badcock from Northampton has raised more than £5,000 to support the lifesaving missions of the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance (WNAA).

Karen began her fundraising journey in 2020 with the help of her daughter Caitlin during lockdown by creating and selling facemasks on social media to raise vital funds to support the local charity.

Not stopping at just selling facemasks, she decided to make and sell microwaveable wheat bags, with the wheat donated by a local company and even received a range of hand sewn items from another local lady to help her raise further vital funds.

To date they have managed to raise a total of £5,649 to support the charity’s lifesaving missions and keep the helicopters flying.

“I’m so pleased to have raised another £1,537 this year to add to my total amount raised since 2020 of £4,112,” said Karen Badcock.

“The Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance was the first charity I thought of when I first started raising funds during lockdown and I would like to thank everyone who has purchased something from me, whether that was on Facebook, or more recently on my craft stall.

“Without your help I wouldn’t have been able to raise such an amazing amount to support this lifesaving charity,” she added.

The Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance crew are available 24/7, 365 days per year, providing lifesaving pre-hospital care to those who need it the most. The charity receives no government or National Lottery funding and relies solely on generous donations from its supporters to fund its vital missions – without this they wouldn’t be able to continue their lifesaving missions across Northamptonshire and further afield.

Karen Hughes, Community Fundraising Executive for Northamptonshire, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to Karen and her daughter Caitlin for continuously raising vital funds to support our charity.”

“Without the dedicated support from the local community and people just like this, we wouldn’t be able to continue our lifesaving missions for those who need it the most,” she expressed.

For more information on the charity, please visit: www.theairambulanceservice.org.uk or call 0300 3045 999.