Twelve years ago, former firefighter Jamie Richards set up a charity group called AED Donate in the town of Stone, England. His mission was simple: get more defibrillators into public places where they’re needed most. Since launching the organization, the group has installed 54 devices in Stone and more than 10,000 across the U.K.
Now, Jamie and friend Joe Dean are lacing up for another good cause. The pair plan to walk 20 miles through Stone, stopping at every public defibrillator in town to perform safety checks and make sure the devices are ready in an emergency. They’re also hoping to raise more than $3,000 to replace batteries and pads, keeping the units rescue-ready for another year.
The challenge includes a stop at a local school, where they’ll teach students the basics of CPR and how to use a defibrillator. And if past years are any indication, they’ll have plenty of community support along the way. Jamie says one of the most memorable moments from a previous walk was seeing drivers pull over just to drop donations into the bucket, a reminder of how much the cause means to local residents.