Student's skydive raises funds

A young member of St John Ambulance Berkshire and her father have raised £800 for the charity by taking part in a skydive from 15,000 feet.

Renovation

Emma Johnson, 20 from Bracknell is a member of St John's Ascot and Bracknell Division and decided to do a parachute jump to raise funds for the renovation of the division's headquarters in Crowthorne Road.

The building is to be extended to create more space for the growing number of members who meet and train there and will also have new kitchen and bathroom facilities built in.

Emma said, 'I had always wanted to do a skydive and I thought it would be wonderful if I could incorporate this with raising money for the unit that has given me so much.

'When I told my parents what I was doing, my Dad immediately put his name down to join me. Once I had jumped, it was truly beautiful to be able to see the countryside laid out before me with no barriers. It was an amazing experience.'

St John Ambulance volunteers attend hundreds of public events every year to provide first aid to those in need. In order to do this they require vast amounts of equipment and in depth training, all of which require funding as the charity does not receive any money from the government or the National Health Service.