Wheelchair tennis star from Swindon backs 'phenomenal' Wiltshire Air Ambulance
Louise Hunt has been named as an ambassador for the charity
A British wheelchair tennis star, who's born and bred in Swindon, has been named as the latest ambassador for Wiltshire Air Ambulance (WAA).
Louise Hunt, who competed for ParalympicsGB at the games in London and Rio, is pledging her support.
The charity receives no regular government grants or national lottery funding, so is largely reliant on donations from local people.
To keep WAA operating, it needs £11,000 every day. That amounts to around £4 million per year.
'People can be in surgery within 10 minutes'
A close friend of Louise recently required the Air Ambulance, after falling badly ill.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio, the retired athlete said the work carried out by staff is "astonishing".
"The thing that astounds me (is) how quick they can get a patient from their location to a hospital, in the time of an emergency. In doing that, that's how they end up saving lives, or doing their very, very best to do so.
"As an example, getting from Swindon to Oxford in a normal paramedic van ... even with blue lights, it's going to take a while. In the air ambulance, it takes seven minutes. It's phenomenal, people can be in surgery within 10 minutes.
"You can't replicate that on the ground, can you? They go to those emergencies where actually the car or van ... isn't quick enough," she added.
Louise has Spina Bifida and has used a wheelchair her whole life.
The 30-year-old competed at Wimbledon twice, and won more than 100 wheelchair tennis singles and doubles titles across her career.
Having left the sport in 2021, Louise's work has now extended into mentoring, public speaking and media duties. She currently lives in Wroughton.
'It saves lives at the end of the day'
From the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, to the cost of living crisis here in the UK, so many organisations are needing financial support at the moment. Louise has told us why she believes WAA is a particularly worthy cause.
"You may need them one day. That may be you personally, a friend, a family member.
"The difference is that it makes a huge difference to the local community.
"It saves lives at the end of the day. What better cause to donate to?"
Anyone wanting more information can visit the Wiltshire Air Ambulance website.