Car firm loans electric vehicles to county charity
A county hospice has just taken delivery of two electric cars to help it provide services across Shropshire.
Rybrook BMW in Shrewsbury has loaned two BMW i3 vehicles to Severn Hospice for them to use in the community.
They will be driven by the hospice's doctors and nurses as they visit patients living with incurable illness in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and Mid Wales.
Dr Alice O’Connor, the hospice’s consultant in palliative medicine said: “The generous loan will enable me to visit patients and families in our county without extra mileage costs to the hospice.
“It also helps strengthen sustainability and environmentally friendly strands of our hospice’s commitment for the future.
“We have installed electric charging points at our new building on the Bicton site, which will come in useful, and I look forward to starting conversations with anyone I meet when out and about.”
Becky Richardson, director of care at Severn Hospice added: “Here at the hospice, we can’t stop caring and now we are helping to care for the environment too.
“I would like to thank Rybrook BMW for their incredible generosity.
Rewarding
“As a rural county, our teams cover many miles a day and so their kind offer has supported our clinicians to continue with their work in a not only a new, modern vehicle but without the expense of fuel – amazing.”
In normal times, the cars would have been used by Rybrook for test drives. But since lockdown they have been stood idle on the garage’s forecourt.
So earlier this year, the dealership offered them to local charities to use in the community and they have now been loaned to Severn Hospice until lockdown ends.
Group Marketing Manager Jessie Hinds said the dealership had already loaned cars to Foodbank Plus and Little Stars baby bank and look forward to helping many more community projects.
"It’s been so rewarding to see our demonstrators out in the community, helping really worthy causes. Whilst our showrooms have been closed, these cars would have been sitting idle on our forecourt, but instead they have been used by hospice nurses to travel to patient’s homes to deliver specialist care.
“They have also been used by Foodbank Plus, to collect and deliver food parcels and next week our MINI will be heading out to assist Leanne Simcoe, founder of Little Stars Baby Bank in delivering donated items to those who need them most.
"Rybrook are proud to be part of such a supportive community and hope that we can help make ‘giving back’ a little easier. Together we can make a difference."
