Going to great heights to install a defibrillator

A local woman has gone to great heights to purchase a defibrillator for her village, by completing a wing walk. 

Hanna Renshaw raised £1,500 last year to install a defibrillator at The Royal Oak in Hawkeridge by being strapped to the wings of a biplane at the Rendcomb airfield near Cirencester.

Now, the defibrillator is in place on the outside of the pub, ready to be used in an emergency.

Hanna explained, “I saw on the news a while ago that there was a story about a child having a heart attack which required the need for a defibrillator. With this in mind, my husband and I were walking around the village one day and noticed that there wasn’t a defibrillator that we could see, so I thought that it would be really helpful for someone to raise money to get one for our village.

“I’ve always wanted to wing walk, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to do that and raise money for a good cause at the same time. We paid for the wing-walk ourselves, so all the money that was raised went straight into the pot for the defibrillator.”

In total, £1,500 was raised from donations from friends, family, and residents of the village.

“It’s something I’ve wanted to do for years and I had my grandchildren cheering me on from the ground, which was just lovely,” she added. 

“I was quite nervous to actually walk from one wing to another, but that quickly went away when I started the walk. I’m so grateful to everyone who chipped in as this defib is here for the whole community to use.”

Shayni from the Royal Oak thanked Hanna for her fundraising efforts saying, “When we heard what Hanna got up to, we were so keen to get involved and let it be installed on the side of the pub.

“What she’s done is fantastic and we can’t thank her enough.”

Other defibrillator locations in Westbury are: The Laverton, Bratton Road; the library, Edward Street; Leigh Park Community Centre, Leigh Park Way; Tesco Express, Fore Street; One Stop, Queens Square; and the Methodist Church, Station Road. 

Going to great heights to install a defibrillator Pictured: Hanna with Shayni from the Royal Oak 

Going to great heights to install a defibrillator 1 

Going to great heights to install a defibrillator (Credit DanWeillPhotography) Pictured: Hanna completing the wing-walk (Credit DanWeillPhotography)  

Going to great heights to install a defibrillator (Credit DanWeillPhotography) 1