On Thursday 26 February, Mike and I set off from the green outside The Anchor Inn at Eling. We’d chatted with the landlady, Julia, the night before and shared the story of our challenge. She excitedly said she’d follow our progress online.
Grey skies squeezed out a drizzle every so often. At least it wasn’t a long walking day, however. Just 6.5 miles into Southampton, yet it turned into one filled with small human encounters that reminded us why adventures like this matter.
The morning began with chance meetings. Scott had only come to Millbrook to drop off a letter for his son. Seeing our large packs and banners, he stopped to chat and joked about whether we were climbing Everest. Moments later another passer-by, Teraj Bhatti, asked us exactly the same thing – a coincidence that made us all laugh. Before long we were taking selfies together, with Teraj happily interviewing us over video on her smartphone at the same time.
Further along Millbrook Road I chatted with Sue in the One Stop shop, and the conversation turned to the work of the air ambulances. When I explained that the helicopters aren’t funded for their flights and even have to pay for the blood they carry on board, she shook her head in disbelief and talked about her 95-year-old mother and the pressures on the system that mean her mother doesn’t always get the care and support she needs. It reminded us about how much these charities mean to people.
Those little moments kept coming. A quick stop for coffee and Lemsip (for my runny nose) near Southampton Central railway station led to a genuinely uplifting conversation with a woman called Hannah who was just about to log into a Teams meeting. She promised to look at our details more closely later.
Gary Deeks, a cheerful forklift driver, pressed £5 into our hands for Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance. Later that day two generous online donations arrived from strangers we had only just met – £25 from Hannah at Southampton Central Starbucks and £10 from Teraj. Their generosity touched our hearts. Every time, it gives us a lift, knowing that together, we’re all helping our air ambulance to potentially make someone’s worst day just a little bit better.
Mike agreed to a little wiggle outside the Dancing Man Brewery (because why wouldn’t he?) and we stopped outside a wonderfully quirky old pub called The Frog and Frigate, complete with skeletons glowing in an upstairs window. Photograph duly snapped and a mental note to visit again one day.
By late morning we reached Crosshouse car park, where our friend Wendy Jacobs waited with hugs, though I ensured they were careful ones as I was now nursing a proper cold. Wendy had even brought a selection of face masks for us to choose from. I was disproportionately pleased to find a lime green one that perfectly matched the HeadRightOut colours. I couldn’t have been more on-brand!
From there Wendy drove us to Southampton airport to visit the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance team.
Although the helicopter base itself is still at Thruxton, the charity’s headquarters are now in Southampton. We were welcomed warmly by Judith, who introduced us to several members of the team and explained more about the charity’s work and plans for their new base right there at the airport.
It was fascinating to see the many people behind the scenes who keep such an organisation running.There was Natalie, another Supporter Engagement Officer who kindly served us Victoria sponge which, after a funny moment with my speak-to-text, will forever be known as “Victorious Sponge”. Ellie from finance mentioned the St Aldhelm’s connection, which caught my attention because it links to the 800-year-old chapel where Mike and I were married.
We met Vicky, who manages the data systems that underpin the whole operation. Richard, the CEO, took time to chat with us and promised to mention our visit when he next saw Charles Hackett, the CEO of Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.
Even though the helicopter crew were out that day, we still managed photos with “Chris the Cutout”, a life-size figure of a crew member that turned out to have a personal connection for someone at a presentation Judith delivered recently. She also shared with us her first-hand experience of the life-saving arrival of the air ambulance, when they attended for her son.
As the contractors complete the runway and prepare for the HIOWAA to move to its new home at Southampton airport in April, the visit reminded us that these charities are far more than helicopters, pilots and doctors. They are entire teams of people: planners, coordinators, fundraisers, administrators, clinicians, engineers and volunteers, all working together to deliver lifesaving care.
What we didn’t know at the time was that our paths would cross with a crew sooner than expected. Two days later, after we had moved on from Southampton, a light aircraft crash-landed on the beach at Lee-on-the-Solent just minutes away from where we were. When the helicopter arrived at the scene, I found myself standing there meeting the very crew we had hoped to see just forty-eight hours before. It was an unexpected and very real reminder of why these services exist.
Back at Wendy’s house that evening we shared wonderful conversations over a delicious vegetable lasagne made with foraged mushrooms, met Rosie the 90-year-old tortoise who had just woken from hibernation, and sat chatting until I could barely keep my eyes open.
Before I wrap up this blog, I’d like to share how the day delivered one final moment of synchronicity for us all.
The post landed on Wendy’s doormat. Being nearest the door, I picked it up and set it down on the kitchen counter. As Wendy sorted through the envelopes, we all stared in disbelief. Right at the bottom was a letter from Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance.
Wendy said she had never received one from them before. We stood there open-mouthed, laughing and shaking our heads at the extraordinary timing of it all.
On a day when we had walked through Southampton sharing the story of air ambulances, visited the Hampshire and Isle of Wight team, and spoken with strangers about why these services matter, their fundraising mailshot had somehow landed on Wendy’s mat that very afternoon.
Sometimes the path seems to weave its own threads between people, places and moments, and every now and then it leaves you standing in a kitchen, staring at an envelope, wondering how on earth it knew.
If you’ve enjoyed this blog, and would like to donate to the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance current fundraising campaign, ‘Operation Airbase’, please click on the link below.
Should you wish to donate to Zoe and Mike’s Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance fundraising pot, please click here:
https://www.dsairambulance.org.uk/Fundraisers/one-coast-any-age
