Oakham charity store celebrates funding over 800 lifesaving missions

Your local air ambulance charity store in Oakham, is celebrating funding more than 800 lifesaving missions for the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance (DLRAA), as the charity celebrates 15 years of vital service.

The boutique charity store opened its doors on 24 October 2012 and is situated in the town centre in Oakham, Rutland and is one of two stores in the town, the other being the Oakham Homestore. Over the past eleven years the charity store has generated an incredible £1,402,313.32 funding more than 800 vital missions – enabling the charity to continue saving lives in Rutland and further afield.

The store has also received 36,320 bags of donated goods but continues to require support from the local community with further donations of new and preloved items for all seasons, as these provide vital income for the charity.

Within minutes, DLRAA’s critical care crews can be on the ground delivering pre-hospital emergency care and giving patients the very best chance of survival – this vital service relies entirely on donations to raise the £1,700 needed for each rescue mission, as the charity receives no government or National Lottery funding.

Assistant Store Manager Pete Carpenter said: “We would like to thank everyone in the local community for all their support over the last eleven years and without this support our crews wouldn’t be able to continue their lifesaving missions, providing pre-hospital critical care to those who need it most.”

“We still rely on the local community’s support with donations of pre-loved items such as bric-a-brac, clothing and toys to keep our crews flying 24/7, 365 days per year,” he added.

The charity is celebrating 50,000 missions and its 15^th anniversary of providing its lifesaving service across Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland in 2023 and is encouraging people to visit a charity store and grab a bargain, donate unwanted clothing to one of many clothing banks, get involved in a challenge event, fundraise, or even sign up to volunteer.

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