Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 ## **Trustee Annual Report** ## **Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders** **Charity no. 107646** **Year Ending- October 31[st] , 2022** Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 ## **For the Year Ended 31[st] October 2022** ## **Board of Trustees** Mrs Edele McGeown (Chairperson) Mrs Bernadette O’Connor (scheme co Ordinator and Vice Chair) Mrs Louise McShane (Treasurer) Ms Karen Mccambridge (Secretary) Mrs Jean Rushe (PR Officer) Mrs Lorraine Murphy (VSO Officer) Mr David Rushe (Health and Safety Officer) **Charity Number:** NI107646 ## **Registered Office:** 112 Culloville Road Crossmaglen Newry Co Armagh BT35 9AQ Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 ## **Introduction:** We are pleased to present the annual report of Crossmaglen and District First Responders for the year ending October 31[st] 2022. This report highlights our activities, accomplishments, and financial performance as a charitable organisation dedicated to providing essential first response services to our community. Our efforts are made possible by the dedication of our volunteers, the support of the community, and the commitment of our trustees. ## **Mission and Objectives:** Crossmaglen and District First Responders are committed to Working as part of a team supporting the Northern Ireland Ambulance service to make a significant contribution to a person’s chance of surviving a life-threatening medical emergency and to strengthen the chain of survival. As an organisation we promote and encourage the setting up of Community First Responder groups. We also when approved by the Committee Provide First Aid cover at Community and Fund-Raising Events. We aim to educate the public how to deal with an emergency and how to carry out CPR and use a defibrillator. Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 ## **Chairperson’s Report** _Overview of the organisation for year ending 31[st] October 2023, as read by Chairperson Edele McGeown at annual general meeting held on Tuesday 15[th] November Parish Rooms Crossmaglen._ It was with mixed emotions that I took on the role as chairperson in November 2021 following the untimely death of our previous chairperson Thomas McKenna. Thomas is still sorely missed within our first responder family, his passing has left a void that his impossible to replace. With that been said, Thomas would have wanted it to be business as usual and for the team to continue their work. Therefore, I was only too proud to continue in his footsteps as chairperson. I want to take the opportunity this evening to share with you some of the call statistics over the last year and also want to give you a snapshot of some of the work the groups has been involved in over the last 12 months. This month marks 7 years of the Crossmaglen First responders. We currently have 15 active volunteers and a committee of 7. ## **CALL OUTS** This year we were dispatched to 58 call outs by NIAS. In addition to that we are often called by members of the pubic to attend to family and friends. The 58 call outs varied from chest pain, diabetic related problems, cardiac arrest and unfortunately death. The average time spent on a call is 1hour 14 mins with call lengths ranging in length from 33mins to 3 hours 25mins Each call had an average of 3 volunteers. In total as a group we have spent 4300 hours on call outs this year alone. The times of the calls vary throughout the day and night and the busiest month was August with a total of 9 calls that month. Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 ## **First Aid Training and events** Earlier in the year In March and April our team further enhanced their skills with a 2 day training course in emergency first aid with MCP training. We undertook this course so that we could further enhance our skills and knowledge to enable us to provide first aid at local events by request. This year we provided first aid at a number of events including: the turning on of the Christmas tree lights, darkness into light, the Santa run, the county camogie final, Michael McConville Blitz, a Time to Play fundraiser and the South Armagh Halloween festival. ## **CPR Awareness** This year, with the lifting of covid restrictions we were able to hold a number of CPR awareness events in local football clubs. These events were held in Forkhill, and Dorsey and on two occasions in Silverbridge and Culloville. This allowed us to train over 100 local people in CPR. Thank you to all our volunteers who helped at these events. A special word of thanks to Bernie O Connor, our scheme co Ordinator, for giving of her time and professional skills to provide members of the community with this vital training. ## **Public AEDs** This year we updated our public access AED cabinets in both Crossmaglen and Cullyhannah this allows members of the public access to defibrillators if they are advised by NIAS to obtain one following a 999 Call. This year the groups took guardianship of a new defibrillator donated in memory of a former firefighter Sean Cumiskey to the fire station in Crossmaglen. this means we are now the guardian of 9 public access defibs in our local area. ## **NIAS Training** In September NIAS provided the group with Manual handling training. A special word of thanks to Stephanie Lecky and her community resuscitation team for the ongoing support, training, and guidance that they provide our group. Thanks also to all the NIAS staff, the call takers and paramedics who have been very supportive to us in our roles over the last year. ## **Raising the groups public profile** We hit the headlines and the airways a number of times this year. Making headlines on Armagh I for the work our schemes has done and I personally had the honour of speaking on behalf of the group on BBC Radio and at Stormont Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 bringing to the forefront how essential first responder groups are giving the current health crisis. ## **Assisting other schemes** We are always happy to see new schemes being formed and were delighted when earlier in the year we were able to provide advice and guidance to two new schemes: Sieve Croob and the Mourne First responders. We wish them every success. ## **Patients and those who passed away** I want to make a special mention to all our patients over the last year. Thank you for allowing us into your homes to help you and your families in what were often difficult and vulnerable circumstances. We hope that you have made a speedy recovery and wish you good health for the future. We remember the patients and their families who unfortunately passed away. We keep them in our thoughts and prayers and hope that by being there we were able to offer some practical help and support, in their hour of need. We also take this opportunity to remember members of our own team who lost loved ones over the past year. We take a moment in silence to remember all those in our community who we have lost this year. ## **Thank you’s** I have a long list of people, businesses, and organisation that I want to offer a heartfelt thank you to. Please forgive me if I omit someone, it will certainly not be intentionally. We are completely funded by the generosity of people in our community, without them we would be unable to continue to provide our essential lifesaving service. We thank everyone who give donations this year, if you put money in a bucket, give to a just giving page, donated your winnings from a raffle, sponsored equipment or held and event in our name, we appreciate every penny and every effort to help fund our group. Thanks this year to the all the families who made donations following loved ones having used our services. Thank you to the McCooey family for the extraordinary amount of money raised in memory of their son Conor. Following a sponsored walk earlier in the year. Thank you to Ashfield golf club for their annual golf tournament which we are gladly the recipient of the proceeds each year. Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 Thank you to Lisa from Acushla Yoga for the yoga morning she held on our behalf. Thank you to the Hatzer family for their kind donations in memory of the late Sean. Thank you to all who donated their winnings from the Rangers half time draw, it is very much appreciated. Thank you to John Glen and the mainliners and all those who organised a raffle at the event to support our scheme. Thank you to Armagh ladies who kindly selected our group as one of their chosen charity in the January fitness challenge. Thank you to McEvoys in Newry for sponsoring Hivis vests for our first aid events Thank you to Declan at MCK embroidery for his constant support with providing uniforms. Thank you must be said to our parish priest father Dermot for allowing us to use the parish rooms for meetings and trainings. A special thanks to Father Tremor former parish priest in Cullyhannh for his support over the years and for welcoming us into his home for meetings and trainings. We wish him well in his new parish. Thanks must also be said to Cullyhannah community association for kindly giving us use of premises for storage for out groups equipment. Thank you also to Sally McKenna who allowed us to store equipment in her garage for a considerable amount of time until we sourced new premises. I want to say a massive thank you to all of my fellow committee members. The work that they do behind the scenes it paramount to the success of the group. From long monthly meetings, to dealing with correspondence, looking after financial matters, co ordinating trainings and events, communicating with groups members and the public, sourcing and maintaining our equipment and dealing with governance and policies. The roles they undertake come with almost daily often thankless tasks that they are all completed in a voluntary capacity. Lastly a massive thank you to all our volunteers. Without you, we would not have a first responder scheme. What the public often don’t realise it that our volunteers are on call 365 days per year 24/7. They can be called in the middle of Crossmaglen and District Community First Responders Charity no. NI107646 the night, the middle of a meal, the middle of their work day. They can have their sleep disrupted, family time interrupted and leisure time taken away and they do all of this, for no personal gain, only to help save lives and assist members of their community. They often have to return to their families and work after dealing with extremely difficult circumstance and they do this selflessly. They also give up time on a monthly basis to attend trainings to further develop their skills. provide first aid cover at local events, and help to create a community of life savers by assisting at CPR awareness events. I look forward to working together as a team for another year to make a further impact on our community. I want to finish by saying it is a honour and a privilege to be the chairperson of the Crossmaglen First Responder scheme and I look forward to what 2023 brings for the group. Edele McGeown 15/11/2022 Chairperson