More to us than training and rescues

“I think it’s wonderful what you do”. Most Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) members will have heard this from members of the public and have replied with modest thanks. But what we do is, in fact, wonderful but not simply in the way that outsiders mean. To be part of the 60-strong Ashburton team is to belong to family which, precisely because it is close-knit, operates so efficiently when called upon to find “the lost, missing, injured and vulnerable”.

To strut our stuff effectively involves training most Wednesday nights, more often than not out on the moor, although during the summer we also spend some evenings at Torbay’s excellent Horizon Centre where our 30 casualty carers keep their skills up to snuff. 

During the winter, every member is required to attend 12 training exercises and six during the summer.  Most of us, especially our trainees who have much to learn in the year to eighteen months it will take them to earn their red jackets, attend far more than the minimum. This is of crucial importance, not simply to remain up-the-date in our range of disciplines, which apart from the medical side, include navigation, ropework, surviving and helping others survive in the sometimes raging white waters of the Dart and working with helicopters. Regular attendance also maintains our closeness to and trust in each other, of the utmost importance when we face dangerous and challenging searches.

Apart from the mileage the police pay us when they call us out and the provision by the team itself of some pieces of clothing, cleaning and waterproofing products and batteries, we volunteer our time and fuel without financial reward. Then there are the busy committee members who normally serve in their various demanding posts for three years. And finally and by no means least are the fund-raising activities which the team is called upon to support. These include the Templer Way walk, our major fundraiser, the Dartmoor classic cycle run and the Dartmoor in the Dark expeditions which are growing in scope and popularity. (The next one is at Postbridge Village Hall on November 23).  

dart2ZERO volunteers are wonderful!

The hours that we are required to volunteer to keep the team at its current high level of operation efficiency, including raising the money to cover our minimum £28,000 annual running costs, certainly do mount up. That is why in recent years our Dart2ZERO supporters have become invaluable.  Your efforts have helped the rest of us to balance work and family with our commitment to the regular work of the team.  By assisting us in doing the bread and butter stuff, including selling draw tickets or manning registration desks at the Templer Way or Dartmoor in the Dark, you really are making an invaluable contribution to the life of the team.

We have always recognised the danger that Dart2ZERO members may sometimes feel out on the periphery. Our annual supporters’ cream tea is the least we can do to recognise the work you do. There is also a standing invitation to anyone in Dart2ZERO to come and watch our training, particularly as a casualty. This way you can get to see what we do and share a pint with us afterwards - a no-less important part of every evening out on the hill. 

So going back to what members of the public come up and say to us when we are decked out in our red finery on a call out, it is not just “wonderful” to be of service to others, it is also wonderful being together with each other in our team. And though you as supporters may not be up at the sharp end, you are no less wonderful in what you do for us. Each and every one of you in your way is a Dart2ZERO Hero. Thank you. 

To find out more about volunteering for Dartmoor Search and Rescue Ashburton as a dart2ZERO supporter, click <- here ->

Amazing support for team of volunteers recognised

Dartmoor Search and Rescue Ashburton’s  ‘dart2ZERO’ Supporters Club held it’s annual ‘Supporters Cream Tea’ to thank the public for all the support they give throughout the year. The day turned out to be a perfect sunny Sunday afternoon, and the team’s rescue centre was the ideal setting for tea, cake and of course scones.

The team, this year celebrating its 40th Anniversary, relies on the public for around 92% of its funding, so public support is vital to keeping the rescuers operational.

Cream teas

Apart from having a natter over a cuppa with team members, the team’s specialist vehicles and equipment was on display giving the chance to get up close and personal. Lots of fun was had as adults and children alike tried their hand at climbing on The Climbing Project’s mobile climbing wall, trying on specialist rescue equipment, squeezed into drysuits, got hung from the rafters on stretchers and ‘immobilised’ in vacuum mattresses.

The team was also able to officially recognise the amazing contribution our supporters make to keeping the team running.

Local business Plastic Surgeon Fine Finishers at Bovey Tracey were awarded the ‘Platinum supporter award’ for being the prime sponsor at this year’s Templer Way event where they contributed over £5,724 to the total, helping to make the event the most successful fundraising event in the team’s history raising over £12,138 in total. Team Chairman Alec Colyer said ‘We were delighted when The Plastic Surgeon got involved with the Templer Way this year and we were very grateful to them for being so enthusiastic in taking part with over 28 of their staff walking the 18 miles from Haytor to Shaldon.’

The South Devon Methodist Churches also presented the team with a cheque which took their support to the team to over £2,000 this year and it was very a fabulous way to recognise their fundraising achievement at the event.

Newton Abbot College took us all by surprise as having nominated the team as their official supported charity for the 2015/16 school year, they unveiled a cheque for £8,571.75. The money had been raised throughout the year at various events culminating in their ‘Challenge Team’ of students who walked the Devon ‘coast to coast’, Lynmouth to Teignmouth at the end of the summer term. A fantastic achievement.

Certificates were presented to many other organisations and businesses throughout the afternoon recognising their own significant contributions to keeping the team operational.

An overwhelmed Fundraising Officer Al Pewsey said: ‘What a great day! The team has so many wonderful supporters, business, organisations and individuals it really is quite humbling. It was a great way to say thank you for the support over a cuppa and a piece of cake.’

‘Thanks to everybody who donates, as well as comment and share updates on social media helping to spread the word of the vital work the team does across Devon not just on Dartmoor, and sometimes further afield. The support really does make a difference to us, a small local charity who don’t have the full-time paid resources of the big boys. Just volunteers wanting to put something back into their local communities and help those in need.’

‘This amazing support we get from our supporters effectively helps to save lives, so they can be very proud of the contribution they make to keeping the team operational.”

If you would like to become a supporter of the team, whether volunteering to help fundraising, bake a cake or subscribe to the dart2ZERO supporters club and get discounts and benefits, you can find out more and join at www.dart2zero.org.uk

Team strengthens bond with its supporters

Dartmoor Search and Rescue Ashburton has strengthened the bond with its supporters with the launch of a new Supporters Club, dart2ZERO.

On Sunday September 13th the team opened its Rescue Centre doors to celebrate the launch of the club.

Cream tea was served followed by a guided tour around the team’s specialist vehicles and equipment to thank supporters for their amazing support throughout the year.

The volunteers who assist Devon’s emergency services when people go missing or become injured in remote locations, rely on the public for donations to continue its 24-hour service that can be life-saving. It’s not just about the money though as the busy team frequently need more volunteers to help with fundraising events vital to its continued operation as team Fundraising Officer Al Pewsey explained:

“Our supporters are our lifeblood and dart2ZERO acknowledges the amazing help individuals, groups and businesses give us each year. It also gives those with some time to spare an opportunity to get involved with a search and rescue team without the callout and training commitments, which can put some people off.“

Club Chair Ayse Rifat was delighted at how well received the new supporters initiative has been:

“We are very excited about dart2ZERO. It enables us to show our appreciation with club newsletters, access to exclusive competitions and special events organised especially for our supporters.”

“For those who have some time to spare and would like to get involved with fundraising, baking a cake or supporting the team in other ways, dart2ZERO will be perfect for them. Club members will even have the opportunity to act as a casualty on team training nights should they wish too.”

The team of volunteers cover not just Dartmoor but rural and urban areas across Devon and sometimes further afield, and dart2ZERO will support and raise awareness of the great work the volunteers do.

If you would like to find out more on the dart2ZERO Supporters Club, go to http://dsrtashburton.org.uk/dart2zero