EMERGENCY services staff have got pulses racing with a saucy new calendar.
The paramedics and engineers stripped off to their birthday suits and posed for a charity calendar to raise money for a Coventry-based ambulance charity.
The cheeky calendar features the men and women of the ambulance service – including paramedics, technicians and patient transport crew – as they have never been seen before.
They hope it will raise vital cash for the The Ambulance Staff Charity (TASC), which provides support for current and retired ambulance service personnel and their families in times of urgent need such as ill health, bereavement or debt.
The Calendar Girls’ style calendar is the creation of Medicnow, a recruitment agency which specialises in providing ambulance crew to the NHS and private organisations.
Kirsty Elton, business development manager for Medicnow, came up with the idea for the calendar as a way of combating the abuse many ambulance staff face while on the job.
She said: “We wanted people to remember that our ambulance crew are people – someone’s father, mother, son or daughter.
“The idea behind doing the calendar was to literally strip away the uniform and the ambulance and show these guys for the
caring and hard-working people they are.
“They do an amazing job, work long hours and save lives, and they deserve our respect and support.
“As we’re sure you can imagine, we had a lot of fun making this calendar but we hope that it will help raise awareness of the people who are there to help when we need it most.”
The photo-shoot took place in a building in Leeds which was donated for the project.
Andy Willers, who is the face of February, said he had no reservations about stripping off for the calendar – preserving his modesty with the help of a well-placed medical bag.
The 51-year-old paramedic with London Ambulance Service, said: “It was absolutely fabulous and I thoroughly
enjoyed it.
“It’s a great charity which does a lot for us.”
A spokesperson for TASC said: “We are delighted to have been chosen to receive proceeds from this ambulance calendar and would like to say a huge thank you to Medicnow for their support.
“Although the calendar is light-hearted, it has been tastefully done and also conveys a very serious message about supporting and raising awareness of the vital work that our ambulance personnel provide every single day.”
Copies of the calendar cost £8, plus £2 delivery, and can be purchased from TASC, by visiting www.theasc.org.uk or by calling 02477 987922.
