‘Overwhelmed’ Heart help is at hand through James’ hard work
CHELTENHAM Specsavers’ star employee James Tombs was ‘overwhelmed’ after being surprised with the defibrillator he and his team have been working hard to raise funds for.
A campaign that kicked off in February, and was spearheaded by James, has raised the £1,800 required to fund a machine.
It is now accessible from inside the store, and will be installed directly outside, to be available for shoppers in High Street should an emergency occur.
“We’re over the moon,” store director Melanie Brackstone said, “James didn’t realise it was arriving so it was a complete surprise for him and he was quite overwhelmed.”
James, who has a learning disability, joined the team at Specsavers last year as part of the Going the Extra Mile Project and had the idea for the ‘Hampers for Hearts’ appeal.
The 36-year-old said landed ‘his first job’ and was welcomed into the team, saying that in the past ‘nobody had wanted me.’
The GEM project helps people deal
ing with circumstances that are potentially causing barriers to them finding employment.
The defibrillator was presented to the store by Kaz and Michael Secker of Horus Med Supplies, who kindly offered to also donate the outdoor defib cabinet which equates to a saving of £6000.
Specsavers said as a result the will be able to donate the remainder of the money towards providing another defib machine in Cheltenham.
Melanie Brackstone added: “We’re hugely grateful to Horus Med Supplies for making this special trip to Cheltenham and offering to donate the outdoor defib cabinet to us at no cost.
“Tidal Training and Cheltenham BID have supported our defib campaign from the start and we were delighted to have them with us on the day of the presentation.”
She added: “We know that the chances of survival following a cardiac arrest decrease by 23 per cent per minute, so it is vital that medical treatment is given as soon as possible.
“Having the defib in the store will ensure that if assistance is required urgently, those who require help can get it quickly.”