A ‘HEROIC’ charity founded by a Rugby mum in memory of her son has been honoured on Restart a Heart Day.
The OurJay Foundation has been named a Restart a Heart Hero for safeguarding communities with a groundbreaking solar and wind powered defibrillator cabinet.
The charity sought out a solution when no suitable electricity supply could be found for defibrillators in Houlton’s wildlife corridor or at Princethorpe College’s sport pitches.
The Foundation adopted Turtle Medical’s pioneering wind and solar-powered defibrillators to solve the problem.
The stand-alone cabinets, which have two solar panels and a turbine designed to withstand and harness storm force gales, can be installed on any solid surface.
To mark Restart a Heart Day today (Thursday October 16), which raises awareness of cardiac arrest and supports people to learn life-saving CPR, the charity is being praised as Restart a Heart Heroes by Turtle for being determined to protect people and help increase cardiac arrest survival rates.
Mike Dowson, the engineer behind the innovative defibrillator cabinets, said: “It’s important for our Restart a Heart Heroes like OurJay, Princethorpe College and Houlton master developers Urban&Civic to be celebrated.
“They were not satisfied to leave members of the community at risk, and they will inspire other places without electrical connection.
“We spent two years undertaking research, development and feasibility studies because we knew there were too many villages, communities and leisure destinations where people were in a vulnerable position if they were to suffer a cardiac arrest.
“Warwickshire is leading the way thanks to OurJay and there is an opportunity for many people to feel more protected, whether in their home, walking their dog or playing sports.”
The OurJay Foundation was founded by Rugby woman Naomi Rees-Issitt following her son Jamie’s death from a cardiac arrest five years ago, when he was just 18.
She said the new defibrillator cabinets were a ‘fantastic idea’, adding: “The closest defib to Jamie when he suffered his cardiac arrest was locked in a school, so it was natural for the OurJay Foundation to focus on installations of public defib equipment outside education premises.”
The charity raises awareness of the importance of publicly accessible defibrillators and provides training in life-saving skills – and has so far installed nearly 300 defibrillators across Warwickshire and beyond. Visit www.ourjay.org.uk for more information.
