May 2022

14 Buckden Roundabout May2022 Village News Buckden WI At our April Meeting we enjoyed a talk by Alan Peasgood about the Royal Australian Flying Doctor Service in Australia. He spoke about John Flynn ’ s vision to es- tablish the Royal Flying Doctor Service in the Australian outback. John was born in 1880 in the gold rush town of Moliagul. John had a troubled childhood. He became a Presbyterian Minister in a remote settlement north of Adelaide. John Flynn served in an area when only two doctors served an area of 300,000 sq kms in Western Australia and 1,500,000 sq kms in the Northern Territory. Realising the need for better medical care for the people of the outback, he estab- lished numerous bush hospitals and hostels. Flynn ’ s attention was caught by the story of a young stockman, Jim Darcy, who had been seriously injured while mustering stock on a cattle station near Halls Creek, in the remote north of West- ern Australia. Darcy had been operated on by the Halls Creek Postmaster who had to follow instructions given via telegraph by a Perth doctor. Although the postmaster ’ s crude operation was successful, Darcy had died almost two months later of complica- tions, before a doctor could attend. The story gave urgency to Flynn ’ s vision of delivering essential medical services to remote areas. Following this tragedy, Flynn envisaged that new technology such as radio and the aeroplane could assist in providing a more effective medical service. His speculations attracted the attention of an Australian pilot serving in World War I, Clifford Peel, who wrote to Flynn, outlining the capabilities and costs of then - available planes. Flynn turned his considerable fund - raising tal- ents to the task of establishing a flying medical service. On 15 May 1928, the Aerial Medical Service was established at Cloncur- ry, in western Queensland. Flynn collaborated with Alfred Traeger, who developed the pedal radio, a lighter, more compact radio for communication, readily available to more residents of the outback for its size and cost. The pedal radio eliminated the need for electricity, which was available in very few areas of the outback in the 1920s. In this way, Flynn married the advantages of both radio and aeroplanes to provide a “ Mantle of Safety ” for the outback. Flynn ’ s vision has continued successfully through the years, providing a valua- ble medical service to people in remote areas. Alan kept the audience enthralled as he is a very good speaker using slides to enhance the presentation, we all enjoyed the evening. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 3rd May at 7:30pm in the Millard Suite and it will be “ From Crowbar to Crocosmia ”. The making of a Fenland Garden. We warmly welcome new members and visitors so if you would like more information please contact: Ruth Nicholas – 07957 334142; Judith Armitage – 01480 811717 FRIENDS IN DEED There are times in our lives when we could all do with a little extra support or companion- ship whatever our age or circumstance. DO YOU HAVE A CAR AND SOME SPARE TIME? We are al- ways on the lookout for new volunteers; especially volun- teer drivers. To find out more about driving for Friends in Deed please contact our transport co - ordinator at peter.mount@btconnect.com or 07914 669967. All our volunteers are DBS checked and safeguarding trained. THE COMMUNITY CAFÉ is our hub. Just drop in to to the Living Stones Room in St Mary ’ s Church Buckden on the 2 nd Wednesday of every month 2.30 - 4pm. Please come and join us, whether you are in need of support or just fancy a cuppa, chat and homemade cake. Need someone to talk to? - it is not easy to ask for help, but why struggle when there are people happy to listen and to help? When we keep things to ourselves and struggle on, things can feel overwhelming and a little bit of help can make all the difference. Come and speak to us at the Com- munity Café or email friendsindeed@stmarysbuckden.org.uk . We can arrange either home visits or a friendly voice and ear over the phone. This is a free service and can be either a one - off chat or regular chats. Need a lift to an appointment? Our team of volunteer driv- ers are able to provide transport for vaccination / hospital / dental / hair appointments etc when family, friends or pub- lic transport is not an option. There are fixed fees for this service. Please email our transport co - ordinator peter.mount@btconnect.com or call 07914 669967 and leave your name, number, address and details of your ap- pointment (date, time, location). Please do give us 48 hours notice if possible; 24 hours notice as a minimum and we shall do our best to meet your needs.