Residents of Sutton Benger are pulling together to bring life-saving equipment to their village.
They want to raise £2,600 for two defibrillators, one for the village hall, home ground of rugby, football and cricket teams, and one for the Wellesley Arms.
The idea came from Jane Verspeak, who works at Chippenham Community Hospital. She said: “As a nurse I’ve seen defibrillators save lives, and with all the sports groups that meet here in the village I feel this is a vital bit of equipment.”
A fun day at the Wellesley Arms pub on Saturday August 30 raised £600 and half of that will go towards the defibrillators, with the rest going to local groups that helped put on the day.
Various village groups have done other fundraising and personal donations have boosted the total to £1,100.
Landlady Sam Loud said: “The reason we’re supporting the defibrillators is that we have a Sutton Benger Masters golf tournament every year and in May, one of our customers had a heart attack at the 18th hole. If it wasn’t for the fact that Chippenham Golf Club had a defibrillator, he wouldn’t be here.”
Ms Loud thanked the businesses who donated raffle prizes – Raymond Glass, Bell House Hotel, La Flambe and Hazelwood beauty salon.
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