Wrexham Rural Community First Responder speaks about role

International Volunteer Day (December 5) is an annual celebration of the contribution that millions of people across the globe make through volunteering.

Almost 600 volunteers give up their time to support the ambulance service in Wales, including 460 Community First Responders and 110 Volunteer Car Service Drivers.

Community First Responders are volunteers who attend 999 calls in their community and administer first aid in the precious first minutes before an ambulance arrives.

They are trained by the ambulance service to administer first aid, including oxygen therapy and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, as well as the use of a defibrillator.

Last year, they attended more than 10,000 emergencies in Wales, arriving at the scene of the most serious ‘Red’ calls in an average of nine minutes.

Among them is Effie Cadwallader, 70, from St Martins, near Oswestry, who has attended more than a thousand 999 calls since she began her volunteer journey.

Effie Cadwallader (Image: WAST)As a member of the Wrexham Rural Community First Responders group, Effie covers a wide area of north east Wales, from Glyn Ceiriog and Llangollen to the west, Rhosllanerchrugog and Marchwiel to the north and Bettisfield and Hanmer to the east, all centred around Chirk.

Effie said: “I joined the CFR scheme when I was suddenly made redundant – I needed something of value to fill my days.

“It was in the very early days of CFRs, and the only first aid I’d done until that point was with the Girl Guides 30 years previously.

“I book on nearly every day for a varying number of hours, averaging five hours per day, from dawn until our daily walk time in the afternoon.

“I have another major commitment in my life, which takes up my evenings and weekends – singing with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir – but that’s when other CFRs are available, so it works out well.”

In October, the grandmother-of-one took home the Community First Responder of the Year Award from the Trust’s annual WAST Awards.

She said: “I’m often asked if I enjoy what I do.

“I reply that I can never enjoy it because I’m visiting people in distress, maybe even having the worst day of their lives.

“The best I can hope for is the satisfaction that I helped someone, that the skills which have been drummed into me were useful and that I alleviated someone’s anxiety and upset."

Lee Brooks, Executive Director of Operations, said: “We place high value on the contribution of our volunteers, and are enormously grateful to those who give up their time to support our ambulance service.

“International Volunteer Day is a perfect opportunity to highlight the work they do and to publicly thank them for their ongoing commitment.”

To find out more about volunteering, visit the trust's website.

Volunteer Car Service Drivers use their own vehicles to transport people to routine hospital appointments, including dialysis, oncology and outpatient appointments.

Eirian Williams (Image: Welsh Ambulance Service)
In 2022/23, they made 48,150 journeys across Wales and covered more than one and a half million miles – the equivalent of driving to the moon and back three times.

Among them is Eirian Williams, a former police officer and professional snooker referee, who started volunteering for the ambulance service in 2008.

The 68-year-old, from Llanelli, was inspired to join the Volunteer Car Service during his ‘down time’ from snooker, and now volunteers three days per week.

He said: “I loved my professional snooker career, but the competition calendar meant I also had a lot of time off, especially over the summer months.

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“I was chatting to a friend who suggested I try volunteering, and another friend said the ambulance service were taking on – the rest, as they say, is history.”

Eirian joined Dyfed Powys Police in 1975 and worked predominantly in the road traffic team based in Llanelli.

He retired from the police in 1993 after spells at Llandeilo and Ammanford stations, including in CID.