Derek Oliver didn’t know what to do. At 84, he’s in poor health and can’t leave his home in the Rhondda Valley in Wales. That meant he couldn't visit his wife Eirwen, 85, who suffers from dementia and lives in an assisted care facility, even though they are only a five-minute drive apart. The Olivers have been married for nearly 60 years.
“Last time I saw her, I said ‘see you tomorrow’," Derek Oliver said. “That was six months ago. I really miss her.”
Though the Olivers aren’t Jewish and live in an area with few Jewish residents, their son David turned to a new Jewish charity in far-away London asking for help. In an Aish.com interview, London-based paramedic Saul Gaunt, who volunteers with the London branch of the Ambulance Wish Foundation UK, said, “We jumped at the opportunity to help."
The Ambulance Wish Foundation was formed in the Netherlands in 2007 to help people with terminal illnesses who cannot travel without the aid of an ambulance to fulfill their final wishes. It has since spread to other countries, including Israel.
The London Branch of the Ambulance Wish Foundation has its origins in 2017, when two enterprising Jewish women, Rebbetzin Freda Kaplan of Hampstead Garden Suburb Synagogue, and London GP Dr. Judith Tobin, joined forces to start a group in London. Rebbetzin Kaplan saw how important it was to help transport home-bound patients after her own father travelled in an Ambulance Wish Foundation ambulance in Israel to attend his grandson’s wedding. Her father passed away four days later, grateful he’d seen his grandson married.
Together the two women helped the Jewish community to raise $100,000 to buy an ambulance. (Rebbetzin Kaplan, a grandmother, went skydiving in order to help raise funds.) They partnered with United Synagogue, which represents Orthodox communities across Britain, and by 2019 the group was ready to train volunteers.
“I’m a registered paramedic working in London,” Saul Gaunt said. He volunteered to help train community members to work with elderly and ill patients in the ambulance. Dozens of volunteers came forward and soon Saul was training 36 Londoners who wanted to help. It was a busy time for the young paramedic; Saul got married in June just as he was in the middle of intensively training the volunteers. “It did get busy but the enthusiasm of the volunteers gave me energy to train them to help others."
Derek Oliver was one of the first people the group helped. Saul and two other volunteers, David Kurash and Peter Phillips, left the area of Barnet in north London at 5:45 AM, and drove about four hours to the Rhondda Valley in south Wales to pick up Derek and take him to visit his wife, just a five-minute drive away in the Ty Pentwyn Nursing Home.
As soon as Derek entered her room, he could see Eirwen was having a good day. She smiled and said hello, and when Derek asked if she’d missed him she whispered a quiet “yes”. The couple held hands and Derek gazed at his beloved wife.
It was an emotional moment. “What became apparent,” Saul explained, “was this was perhaps the last time Derek and Eirwen were going to see each other, perhaps ever.” The London volunteers left the couple alone for a couple of hours, then returned and drove an exhausted Derek back home. “Derek was very emotional afterwards,” Saul recalled. “I asked him how he felt and he said ‘thank you so much, it means the world to me.’”
The Oliver’s son David was grateful, noting that the London volunteers drove over 360 miles just in order to take his father around the corner in five minutes. He’d tried to find local ambulances willing to drive his father, but was unsuccessful. The London ambulance volunteers were the only crew willing to help.
Saul and the other volunteers don’t want thanks or praise. His crew was delighted that they were able to help the couple reunite and are looking forward to other opportunities to help other people soon. “We’ve only been operational for about a month and a half and we’ve already undertaken two wishes.” By the end of September the foundation is planning to transport at least six people, including a very ill person who wants to go on a final outing with his family.
“We’re trying to help as many people as we can,” Saul said. He is proud of the ambulance volunteers. “The things we’re asking people to do are not easy. It's physically demanding and emotionally draining, yet many in London’s Jewish community are excited to volunteer.
"We’ve all got it in us to get out there and do some good."
(8) Cheryl Stine, September 21, 2019 10:22 PM
Wonderful
As I read this I was overwhelmed with thankfulness for the loving hearts these volunteers possess.
(7) Aron F, September 17, 2019 4:41 PM
beautiful keep up your good work
(6) Sara, September 16, 2019 5:19 PM
Lovely Story
This is a lovely, inspiring story and a reminder of the kindness that still exists in our world. Thank you for bringing it to us.
(5) Beverly Appel Maurice, September 16, 2019 8:32 AM
What a Mitzvah
A beautiful story. It is like Make-A-Wish for adults. Perhaps, include a way for moved readers to contribute.
(4) Nancy Zwiebach, September 15, 2019 3:36 PM
Tears of appreciation
It is so wonderful to learn of this amazing "mitzvah" done for strangers. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the generosity of people. Some think of generosity/doing "good" only in monetary terms. Not to deny how helpful that can be, but generosity in humanity terms - kindness, time, smiles, a helping hand is soul giving.
(3) Kira Sirote, September 15, 2019 1:45 PM
So touching...
I know someone who could have benefited greatly from this service, a few years back, but alas, it wasn't available. Amazing, I hope that it keeps spreading
(2) Ann, September 15, 2019 1:24 PM
Crazy!
This is not how public charity funds should be spent. If they felt they wanted to help they should have paid a local minicab service to take him around the corner
Anonymous, September 15, 2019 1:47 PM
Unfortunately, people with certain health conditions cannot be transported by cab. They need to be transported by ambulance, where there is life saving equipment and trained EMTs at hand. When my daughter was much weaker we needed this for her, too. Thankfully, she is now strong enough that she can be transported in a car.
In the US you can pay out of pocket for an ambulance; I guess you can’t in Britain.
Ann, September 15, 2019 3:11 PM
Funds
If am ambulance was needed they should have hired a private ambulance service which certainly exists in England
Anonymous, September 16, 2019 1:01 AM
Ann ??
I can't understand why this act of compassion is so troubling to you? It may have been the last time this elderly couple sees each other. This situation was not putting any one else's emergency into limbo. They obviously don't have the money or insurance to pay for this. Why begrudge people who are sick & old of the comfort of visiting one another. They have been married near 60 years! This is a great story of compassion! And the Ambulance people were not even payed-done out of the goodness of their hearts. At some point in your life you will probably need the help of strangers and, I pray it's there for you. Another great article from Aish.com!!!
Ann, September 16, 2019 3:12 PM
Kindness
If someone would have spent his own money and resources to do this good deed I would be really impressed, but when you are expending publicly donated funds I can't see how such a decision can be taken to do so, especially bearing in mind the alternative method of doing the same thing without the expense.
One has to wonder whether these people would have done this had they had to fund it themselves
Ann, September 16, 2019 3:18 PM
Ambulance
Additionally you say that this was not putting anyone else 's needs in limbo. If the ambulance which one assumed is there to respond to emergencies was out of town for 10 hours, surely such a risk exists
Anonymous, September 17, 2019 1:02 AM
Wow!
Ann, did you read the article? It's the Ambulance wish Foudation. It's a charity foundation run by Jewish volunteers . It is not a regular ambulance service. They already have 6 more charitable runs scheduled. They operate by donations. Anyone who needs a emergency ambulance will have one as always. This service dose not interfere with those. I think this is a very good thing!
(1) Maria Dodoc, September 15, 2019 12:49 PM
Thank You!