and pupils from Hendre Junior School
Two community groups have donated heart defibrillators to a junior school and a church.
The Tommy Cooper Society presented its lifesaving machine – used on patients who have suffered a cardiac arrest – to the Van Road United Reformed Church and Vanguard Centre in Caerphilly town.
Meanwhile, Penyrheol, Trecenydd and Energlyn Community Council has also donated a defibrillator to Hendre Junior School in Trecenydd.
Community councillor Bill Allen, who is chair of the council, said: “This is the first of three defibrillators that we’ll be donating. The others will be installed at Penyrheol Community Centre and Trecenydd Community Centre.
“Our deputy chair Susan Dickens works at the school and knew they wanted a defibrillator and we were only too happy to help them get one.”
John Farmer, headteacher at Hendre Junior School, said: “A defibrillator is a vital piece of equipment and I think every school should have one.
“The community council has been very kind in its donation and I would like to thank them.”
The Tommy Cooper Society launched its ‘Tommy’s Ticker’ campaign to mark the 30th anniversary of the Caerphilly-born magician’s death.
Cooper died on stage at the age of 63, in front of millions of television viewers during Live From Her Majesty’s on April 15 1984.
The latest donation is the society’s ninth defibrillator donated to a public building.
Tudor Jones, Secretary of the Tommy Cooper Society, said: “Some 60 or so volunteers and supporters entered into the spirit of the occasion by donning fezzes to witness the presentation of the heart defibrillator.”
