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Meet our volunteers

Our volunteers are at the heart of our life-saving mission. Below, you can learn more about our dedicated and passionate volunteers who play a crucial role in helping us remain operational and saving lives across Essex and Hertfordshire.

The Volunteer Forum

The Volunteer Forum, made up of volunteers, representing the whole volunteer team, joined by key staff members, meets in a formal setting. Its purpose is to continually improve and develop the volunteer experience and, together with the input staff provide, add to the success of the charity. It gives volunteers and staff a channel to communicate ideas and issues and provides a platform for discussion. The Forum works to improve communications in both directions and discusses points and matters raised by volunteers and staff to find good solutions. The Forum is the voice of all volunteers.

Pictured from left to right: Eva Maria Sell, Karen Kirwan, Sue Williams (Chair), Ken Reed, John Horton, Peter Hennessy, Di Leggett, Suzanne Harvey, Hoss Atri, Roger Wardley

Sue Williams
Forum Chair

“I joined EHAAT as a volunteer in 2019 and was appointed as Chair of the Volunteer Forum Group later that year.

I am very passionate about the Forum and the work it does to represent the whole volunteer team.”

A smiling woman in a blue volunteers fleece holds an instagram frame cutout

Janice Gregory

Braintree Shop Volunteer

For years, Janice has supported us, generously dedicating her time and energy to help us in our Braintree store. Her kindness volunteering makes a big impact on our life-saving mission.
Janice extends her compassion beyond EHAAT, supporting homes for Ukraine and lending a helping hand to Olha. In turn, Olha has supported our charity with Janice by volunteering at our Braintree shop too!

“I’ve supported Essex & Herts Air Ambulance for many years. I saw that the EHAAT Braintree shop were advertising for volunteers and that is how I ended up helping in the shop. I do anything and everything!

I became a Homes for Ukraine sponsor in April 2022. When Olha (pronounced Olga) came to live with me she wanted to come into the shop to help too.”

George Nichols

Royston Shop Volunteer

For the past four years, George has been an invaluable part of our team, bringing his expertise to our Royston shop. Working three mornings a week, he’s a wizard on the tills and takes great care of our books.

George finds joy and fulfillment in volunteering, making his time with us even more special. His positive attitude and enthusiasm create a welcoming atmosphere for both our staff and customers!

George has now been with us for four years and is a highly valued member of the team at the Royston shop. He helps three mornings a week and is a wizard on the till. He also looks after the books for us.

George regularly covers the shop when staff have meetings, holidays, appointments and for any sickness. He finds volunteering enjoyable, rewarding and had made many new friends. Thank you George for being such a star!

Tina Jolly, Royston Shop Manager

Phil Millard

Community Volunteer

Phil brings joy and inspiration to our charity through his captivating talks delivered to a wide range of audiences, from Cubs to local businesses. His ability to engage and educate is amazing.

He also has dedicated several years to our volunteer forum, lending his voice and expertise to spread the word about EHAAT. Additionally, he continues to carry our collection tin, raising funds to support our life-saving mission!

“Personally, I obtain the most pleasure giving talks to a wide range of organisations from Cub groups and various associations to the occasional local business. I had a few years on the volunteer forum and still have a collection tin round.”

Joyce Moore

Community Volunteer

Despite working full time, Joyce finds the time and the heart to make an impact as part of our team. From bucket collections at supermarkets or helping out at our exciting events like Strictly Air Ambulance, Joyce is ready to lend a hand.

Joyce takes her commitment a step further, participating in fundraisers such as treks, going above and beyond to raise vital funds for our charity.

“But it’s the volunteers that we need, we need people to come and give their time, be it supporting at either of the air bases, the charity shops, doing tin collections or bucket shakes, it all helps out.”

Ian Pleasance

Earls Colne Volunteer

For the last 5 years, Ian has found the time to volunteer for us, alongside his full time job as a software developer. Ian was already familiar with the crew and passionate about the work we do, since he previously flew aircrafts from the Earls Clone airfield. His enthusiasm makes him the perfect volunteer to help out on our visitor centre tours!

“One of the great things about volunteering for the trust is that I can fit it around my job. The team send out volunteer task requests and its up to you what you sign up for. There are no set expectations about how much you do and never any pressure to do more.”

Tony & Anna Beecroft

A special thank you to Tony and Anna Beecroft who have been dedicated volunteers for EHAAT since 2022 – having supported the charity in a myriad of different ways for many years. Whether they’re working reception, hosting tours, or helping out at Earls Colne – we couldn’t fly without them!

“I particularly enjoy being a VC Tour Guide, as it gives me the opportunity to share my enthusiasm for EHAAT and explain the vital work that they do, to VC tour participants. It has also given me the opportunity to interface with EHAAT staff in various functions at NW and EC and I genuinely feel part of the wider EHAAT family.

We can wholeheartedly recommend volunteering for EHAAT!”

Ian Thomas

My name is Ian and I became a volunteer at EHAAT in 2017 after their HEMS attended a friend who had suffered a heart attack. Sometime afterwards the EHAAT HEMS also attended my mother who had collapsed in the street.

Being a volunteer at EHAAT is very enjoyable and fulfilling. Now I am retired I have been able to volunteer for several roles and this has enabled me to appreciate the teamwork involving everyone at EHAAT, which ensures that we keep flying. To be part of an organisation where everyone works so well together in the EHAAT “family” to achieve our aims is a privilege.

I have recently been involved, as part of a team, in finalising the content and operation of our North Weald visitor centre to enable us to again welcome guests to the airbase and for them to learn about the HEMS operation. It was a challenge to be involved in setting up the technology within the visitor centre, but we got there in the end! I am also a visitor centre tour host, giving tours to our guests.

I was delighted to also be asked to meet the Earl and Countess of Wessex during their visit to the North Weald airbase in March this year. During their visit they were welcomed to the visitor centre where they met patients who HEMS had attended and their families.

Another role I am involved in as a volunteer is as part of the North Weald reception team. The team welcomes visitors to the airbase, receives deliveries and assists the office teams where needed. The charity is always looking for more volunteers to join the team and I look forward to meeting anyone who decides to give it a go!

Carole Simmonds and Clive Enguell

Clive and I became volunteers for Essex Air Ambulance in 2011, recently receiving our ten year awards. We were looking for a way to say thank you after the Essex Air Ambulance went out to my uncle a couple of times, saving his life on both occasions.

We help with community fundraising and over the years have done a variety of jobs from running stalls at large events at Barleylands and County Shows to small merchandise stalls at the local Fire Station Open Days. All have been very enjoyable, in particular the interaction with the public and especially the children.

It is a great opportunity to make the public aware of EHAAT and to dispel a few myths about how we are funded. In later years we have also taken on the role of tin collectors covering the areas of Great Wakering, Shoebury, Thorpe Bay, Southend, Westcliff, Leigh and parts of Rayleigh.

We get immense satisfaction from being volunteers although obviously things have been quiet for a couple of years and we cannot wait until we are able to get back to full time fundraising. The highlight of our time has to be the amalgamation with Hertfordshire in 2017. The anticipation of purchasing our own helicopter was very exciting and the first sight of the AW169 flying over Audley End had even the hardened volunteers weeping for joy. We cannot think of another charity more deserving and we are proud to be part of this wonderful team.

Kate Hufton

My name is Kate and I am in my 3rd year of Volunteering for EHAAT. I retired after nearly 40 years involved in Education and decided I wanted to use some of the skills I had developed in that time to support a charity. My husband is an advanced motorcyclist locally and his group have been involved in fundraising for EHAAT so it was an obvious choice for me. Being a Volunteer is very fulfilling. I enjoy working with an amazing team at the Buntingford shop as well as being part of the Reception and Visitor Centre Tour Team at North Weald, where I get to see the AW169 close up and see the crew and the North Weald staff in action. My other role is giving talks and being involved in events within the community including WI groups, Rotary, Yarn Bombers and Mind groups. Talking to school groups gives me a great deal of pleasure; seeing younger pupils trying on helmets and role-playing being part of the crew or giving assemblies /delivering workshops to older students always leaves me feeling very encouraged as the groups are genuinely interested in finding out about EHAAT. One of my school highlights of last year was an Assembly I did for pupils and parents at a school near Bishops Stortford. Their Year 6s had selected EHAAT as their chosen charity. I was invited back with Charlotte from the fundraising team and Sinead one of the Paramedics to start their Colour Run Sports day event, which was great fun. I then received an invitation to represent EHAAT at their final Speech Day with the guest of honour Dame Floella Benjamin. The school raised £4000 and the work of EHAAT was acknowledged in the main speech. I feel privileged and proud to be one of over 400 Volunteers supporting the teams who work out of North Weald and Earls Colne and I’m very lucky to have also made new friends through the different activities I have been involved.

Kate Lloyd-Davies

I first heard about EHAAT by chance in 2010, shortly after taking early retirement and when I was trying to find an interesting volunteering opportunity. After talking to one of the volunteers who was representing the charity at a concert I was singing in, I decided that this was what I was looking for. At the time, the Herts helicopter had only been flying for 2 years, and the whole of the Herts fundraising team worked out of a tiny office in the old hangar at North Weald. How things have grown since then!

Over the past 12 years, I have given many talks and have also been involved in everything from bucket collections to manning stands at fundraising events, helping at landings when the helicopter is on a PR visit, helping in the office, working in the cash room, having a (small) tin round and attending events to receive cheques. Now that the new airbase at North Weald is operational, I am also part of the volunteer rota on the desk in Reception.

Quite apart from the satisfaction of helping to raise money for such a worthwhile cause, volunteering for EHAAT has given me the chance to meet so many interesting people – not just the staff, crew and volunteers, but also among the general public. I could never have guessed that a chance conversation 12 years ago would lead to so much.