Our ambassadors

Dr Karen J Dickens

Despite spending the last 40 years living and travelling to different places around the UK and internationally, Cornwall is and will always be, home. My parents, family and close friends still live in Cornwall and it’s definitely where my heart is – there is nowhere as special and I’m honoured to have been asked to be an Ambassador for the Cornwall Air Ambulance.

Having grown up in Cornwall, I know that there are also challenges, none more important than the long distances to hospitals, the difficult roads and traffic congestion. That’s why the Cornwall Air Ambulance is so important. My mum was airlifted to Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro and it was a big relief to my dad and myself to know that she was in such good hands – they not only make a difference to patients but to families too.

I’ve got to know the whole Cornwall Air Ambulance team and I’m in awe of the paramedics, the pilots and the teams who support them. I was delighted to be able to raise over £95,000 to buy the pilot’s seat in the new heli last year with help from my company, Comitti Boats UK & Caribbean and favourite partners, including Clarendon Fine Art, Maranello Ferrari, Bollinger, Rick Stein, Sheree Valentine Daines and Stephanie Millward MBE.

Comitti Boats UK & Caribbean have also just sponsored the new pilots’ uniforms and I’m committed to supporting Cornwall Air Ambulance, both through personal donations as well as leveraging my partners and teams to deliver exciting fundraising initiatives, including The Twelve Days of Christmas Challenge which has just launched.

Together we can keep the Cornwall Air Ambulance flying – saving lives and keeping families together.

Rob Harris

After a longstanding relationship with the charity, Rob Harris, owner of popular surf and lifestyle brand Ann’s Cottage, has become an ambassador.

Rob said: “I’m delighted to be an ambassador for Cornwall Air Ambulance. My late wife Bev and myself have supported CAAT since its very beginning but started to get more involved when the air ambulance saved my middle daughter’s life 17 years ago after a very serious RTA near New Polzeath. Since then, we pledged we would donate every year and do what we could to help keep the air ambulance going and support this wonderful, vital service and the team of volunteers helping to save lives throughout Cornwall”.

Gordon and Tana Ramsay & Family

The world famous Michelin-starred chef and TV presenter, supported by his wife Tana and all of the family, has joined forces with the charity to help promote the lifesaving work it carries out across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

The Ramsay family spend a lot of their time in Cornwall and have become aware of the importance of the air ambulance to the county and the challenges the charity is facing to deal with the impact of Covid-19 lockdown on its fundraising. The family visited the charity airbase in Newquay during August 2020 to meet the duty crew and officially launch their roles as ambassadors.

Gordon Ramsay said: “Cornwall has been our family home now for 5 years and we have always been totally in awe of the lifesaving work we see the Cornwall Air Ambulance do every day. We are so immensely proud and honoured to become Ambassadors and join the team in helping continue to raise awareness and promote the fantastic service they selflessly carry out for the people of Cornwall.”

Paul and Emma Ainsworth

Michelin-starred chef Paul Ainsworth and his wife Emma, who together run the renowned restaurant Paul Ainsworth at No. 6 in Padstow, became charity ambassadors in 2018.

Stirred to support the lifesaving charity, Paul and Emma said: “We are delighted to be ambassadors for Cornwall Air Ambulance. Being based in Padstow, we see first-hand the vital emergency medical treatment they bring to our community and we couldn’t think of a better cause to collaborate with. We loved being involved in the success of the New Heli Appeal, helping raise the £2.5 million for the new helicopter. We’ll be supporting events held by the Cornwall Air Ambulance team and will be holding events of our own to raise as much as we can going forward.

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan

Both Richard and Judy share a love for Cornwall and as advocates for Cornwall Air Ambulance, they help shine a spotlight on the charity to help raise funds for this lifesaving service.

“We are delighted to have been asked to be ambassadors for Cornwall Air Ambulance, this is an incredibly important charity that directly saves lives and is one of the most important organisations in the county. Any one of us could need the help of Cornwall Air Ambulance at any time, so we are giving our support to the charity.

The charity has a huge impact on communities across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Its next generation helicopter allows Cornwall Air Ambulance to reach more people in urgent need of lifesaving help more quickly, but also provides its crew of paramedics and doctors with the equipment they need to deliver an exceptional level of pre-hospital care.
We would urge everyone to give their support to Cornwall Air Ambulance to help save more lives.”