Our team

Jill first came across Cornwall Air Ambulance when she attended a talk about the charity’s work. She decided to become a volunteer and in her volunteering days covered nearly every role at HQ. Being a volunteer gave her a brand new social network, friends and a chance to get back to work having not worked for a while.

Today Jill is a full time member of staff. She takes care of the ledgers, bank reconciliations and retail accounts, and it’s well known that she likes to get to grips with paperwork!

John Gallagher is the Manager of our superstores in St Austell and Camborne. His role covers the management of both stores and the logistics teams that provide furniture collection and delivery services across the whole of Cornwall.

He has lived in Cornwall for over 30 years. John joined the charity in January 2018 following an extensive career in retail management within the Dixons Group and latterly as a business and enterprise manager for the National Trust.

In his spare time John and his fiancée, Emma, are undertaking a camper van conversion and have plans for extensive travels in the future.

Julia has been working in retail for more than 20 years and changed to charity shops in 2013. She loves the variety that working in a charity shop gives her as she never knows what’s going to come through the door from one day to the next.  As an avid charity shop shopper Julia loves a bargain and can’t wait to get new stock out for our customer so they can get one too.

She spends her free time running her two teenage boy around to various club and events.  Julia is a keen reader and doesn’t go anywhere without a book in her bag. She also has two dogs that are a constant source of amusement as they both have very naughty characters.

Karen joined the team in November 2019 to develop major donor relationships.

Following a successful career in senior corporate banking, working with significant businesses and high net worth individuals has given Karen a wealth of experience, skills and an extensive network. She was inspired to transform her hobby of charity fundraising into a new career. Karen has raised over £350,000 for many local and national good causes, including Guide Dogs for the Blind, C.H.I.C.K.S, the RNLI, Children's Hospice South West, Macmillan Cancer Care, Marie Curie and Cornwall Air Ambulance.

Karen's passion for music and classical singing, alongside her charity fundraising, has seen her perform with the full Band of the Grenadier Guards at London's Honourable Artillery Company. She has duetted with Jonathan Antoine, star tenor of Britain's Got Talent and performed alongside Aled Jones in Coventry Cathedral. Singing ‘What a Wonderful World’ with humanitarian Terry Waite CBE was a special highlight, raising money for Emmaus for the homeless in Cornwall. She has toured South Australia on two occasions, performing as guest of the Kernewek Lowender - the world's largest festival of Cornish culture. Closer to home she has sung as soloist with many of Cornwall’s male voice choirs and brass bands.

Karen is a member of the Institute of Fundraising and proud to be a Rotarian. Proud of her Cornish roots, Karen is motivated by the compassion and community spirit shown by people in Cornwall and beyond. She is thrilled to be working for this worthwhile, lifesaving charity, alongside the rest of the incredible Cornwall Air Ambulance team.