Raising funds to place defibrillators throughout the UK

When we asked Jamie about his role he struggled to provide a relatable answer that didn’t involve being all serious and professional, we decided to write it ourselves.

Jamie is the one who created AEDdonate, it was born out of realisation when he worked for the fire service, through his work he realised the importance of defibrillators and just how easy they are to use. With a burning idea inside he decided to leave his job in the fire service to focus on what he could do to improve responses to Sudden Cardiac Arrest. 6 years down the line and AEDdonate have been able to facilitate the placement of over 1900 defibrillators throughout the country. Whilst the mission is big Jamie wants to put a stop to families suffering heartache and devastation due to something that can reduced or prevented.

You might think being a CEO means that Jamie is sat at his desk engrossed in the computer but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Jamie loves being out in the community whether it be site visits, training, doing a stint in the charity shop or simply meeting supportive organisations and potential sponsors. Jamie is very much hands on and encourages all of us to do the same.

When Jamie isn’t at work he enjoys spending time with his wife Rachel and the 2 little boys in his life. Being a dad has made Jamie want to work harder and stay committed even when the going gets tough.

“No one ever made a difference by being like everyone else” PT Barnum

Rachel came to the team after 17 years in the ambulance service, working frontline as a Paramedic. Throughout her ambulance career Rachel gained hands on experience when dealing with out of hospital cardiac arrests and was also part of the community response team working to ensure communities could be better prepared in the event of a medical emergency.

She is passionate and determined to help break down the barriers and prove that no obstacle should stand in the way of a community equipping themselves with a defibrillator, she is a woman on a mission. Equipped with her clinical knowledge and experience Rachel is also a qualified instructor and provides training courses in the community to help reassure and promote the safe use of a defib.

Rachel is also responsible for the retail side of the charity; you know what they say about women and shopping! Whilst overseeing the 3 shops she also manages our donation banks and recycling opportunities.

Rachel is mum to Fletcher and Seth and a supportive wife to Jamie and his wild ideas.

The ‘technical’ one, anything that’s a bit more complicated that switch it off and on again gets sent to Chamila and 9 times out of 10 he sorts it! When he’s not troubleshooting for the rest of us he ensures the charity runs well on a day to day basis. When you see a picture of the defib on the wall, Chamila is the one who has ordered the cabinet and defibrillator, organised the sponsor board and arranged the installation with our electrician.

Chamila has a degree in accountancy and finance, thinking back to those days of study he openly admits he didn’t ever see his qualifications helping to make such a difference in the community.

Chamila is married to the lovely Sue and describes himself as car enthusiast, whilst he’d also like us to mention his collection of RC cars we’re keeping this topic of conversation to a minimum (he’s very passionate!).