Rebecca Selkirk

Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s Flagship Leeds Pop-up Shop Soars High with £50K in Sales

by

The Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s flagship high-street pop-up shop located in St Johns Shopping Centre, Leeds, has hit an impressive £50,000 in sales since opening its doors in January 2020. This impressive milestone is a testament to the generosity and support of the local community, whose donations and purchases help fund the charity’s life-saving missions.

In 2022, the shop raised an impressive £25,000 and has continued to make a significant contribution to the charity in 2023. Within the first three months of this year alone, the shop has raised a fantastic £11,500, with shoppers showing no signs of slowing down.

Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Yorkshire Air Ambulance pop-up shop has managed to attract regular supporters, demonstrating the community’s unwavering commitment to supporting this worthy cause.

Located on the ground floor, just by the escalators, the shop is open from 10 am to 3 pm every Wednesday and Friday, with alternating Saturdays, and sells a wide range of items donated by members of the public. These include official Yorkshire Air Ambulance merchandise, hand-knitted baby and children’s clothes, adult & children’s clothing, books, children’s toys, bric-a-brac, records, and DVDs, among other interesting items.

The shop is led by Community Fundraiser Clare Deacon, who has a team of dedicated volunteers helping her throughout the week. Clare said, ‘We’re thrilled to have reached this milestone and want to thank everyone who has donated, volunteered, or made a purchase from our shop – Every penny raised goes directly towards funding our life-saving missions, it’s a testament to the generous community spirit we have here in Yorkshire.

With such a diverse range of items available, our shop is a great place to find a bargain and support a good cause at the same time. So why not pop in and have a look around? You never know what treasures you might find!’.

Centre Manager, Jenny Murphy, said, ‘We are incredibly pleased to see the YAA pop-up shop at St. Johns Shopping Centre having so much success. The store is always so busy and the team of volunteers are just brilliant with their customers, so to hear of them reaching this impressive milestone is not a surprise. I wish them every continued success in their sales for the rest of this year’.

Couple Takes on KA-razy Fundrasing Tour to Raise Money for Yorkshire Air Ambulance in Son’s Memory

by

Audrey and Sean Duxbury have taken on the London to Lisbon, Two Ball Rally, in memory of their late son Joshua Duxbury who passed away following a motorcycle accident in 2016.

On 8th October 2016, Joshua, aged 21 at the time, was travelling to work as a Chef at his mother’s popular café, Route 59 in Skipton,  when he sadly lost his life in a road collision with a Lorry.. The Yorkshire Air Ambulance crew were dispatched to the scene, however, sadly Joshua had died on impact.

Audrey and Sean are now keen to continue their son’s memory by fundraising and supporting the emergency response charity, Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

The couple considered many traditional ways to fundraise, but after learning about the ‘Two Ball Rally’ tour, they knew it would have been something Joshua would have loved, and didn’t hesitate for a moment to sign up. With a strict budget of £800 as per the rally rules, Audrey and Sean purchased their 58’ plate Ford KA and began decorating it in a golf buggy theme, in homage to the last activity they ever did with their son.

The couple, who are driving as team ‘Underpar’ are documenting their journey on social media and will be dressing in different golfing attire for each leg of their trip ranging from traditional 30’s, 50’s, 70’s, 90’s and modern-day dress.

The duo set off on their trip on the 5th of April from Joshua’s favorite football club, Blackburn Rovers to make their way down to the official start of the race at the famous Brands Hatch circuit.. Joining over 37 other rally drivers at the starting line, Audrey and Sean were met by Joshua’s Aunt and Uncle who will also be partaking in the rally in a duck-themed car.

Travelling from Brands Hatch race circuit, the convoy will travel via Le Mans, Bordeaux, Burgos, and Braga, before finishing the tour in Lisbon. Upon arrival at each destination, the rally group will take part in fun challenges to collect points, and win spot prizes, all adding to the sense of adventure.

Supporters have so far donated £450 via Audrey and Sean’s Just Giving page. The married couple, who will celebrate their 38th wedding anniversary on the day they arrive in Lisbon, hope to celebrate by reaching their fundraising target of £1500.

Audrey, who is currently restoring Joshua’s Motorbike as part of her personal therapy, said, ‘We knew when we set out on this challenge that it would be a great way to honour our son, sharing in his passion for motor rallies, as he completed a tour of Dublin’s coastline before he passed away. We are certain he would have laughed at our fancy dress costumes too! Thank you to everyone who has donated to us, it means the world that we can remember Joshua whilst also supporting a charity that is so close to our hearts’.

When speaking of his fundraising efforts, Sean said, ‘Thank you to everyone who has donated so far, we miss our son every single day and doing this European tour means so much to us. Not only has the Yorkshire Air Ambulance touched our lives very closely, but many of our regulars from our Café, which is really well supported by the motorcycle community, have required it too. We hope our donation will help towards the cost of saving more lives around Yorkshire’.

North Yorkshire Regional Fundraiser, Tessa Klemz, said, ‘We are incredibly grateful to Audrey and Sean for their fantastic fundraising efforts in memory of their son, it sounds like a brilliant adventure, and I know it means so much to them. Their dedication and generosity will help us continue providing life-saving care to those most need it. We cannot thank them enough for their support and for making a difference in the lives of others’.