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Respiratory specialists from around the world gather to mark the achievements of AAIR’s Professor Stephen Holgate

During his 30-year medical career Professor Holgate has been at the forefront of many new breakthroughs and developments instrumental in helping shape our understanding of respiratory disease, particularly asthma and its management. To recognise his tremendous achievements and influence, fellow experts from all over the world came together in a surprise “This is Your Life” moment.
Around 80 former colleagues travelled from as far a field as Mexico, USA, Hong Kong, India, New Zealand and Australia. All had come to pay tribute to Professor Holgate as part of his 60th birthday celebrations and to mark his Presidency of the British Thoracic Society.
Professor Holgate, AAIR Chairman and Medical Research Council Clinical Professor of Immunopharmacology at The University of Southampton School of Medicine, knew nothing about the planned tribute until he arrived for work as usual at Southampton General Hospital.
He said: "When I walked into the room I was completely overwhelmed. Seeing all of those faces and slowly realising I knew everyone. I am very touched that so many people have travelled so far to be here today and to make this such a wonderful occasion. This has probably been one of the most emotional days of my life, secondary to my wedding day of course.”
Fellow colleague Dr Peter Howarth said: “Professor Stephen Holgate is internationally recognised for his fundamental contribution to our understanding and treatment of asthma and has fostered the interest of many in this area through his enthusiasm and support. The fact that so many travelled such distances and made the time to be present is a mark of the feeling and gratitude they have for him.”
The two-day symposium in professor Holgate’s honour included presentations and lectures from the many assembled world-leading specialists highlighting the advancements of our understanding and treatment of respiratory disease over the past 30 years.
Professor Holgate’s PA Chris Vincent, who has spent months co-ordinating the celebrations, said: “I can't really say who Stephen was most shocked to see but he was extremely pleased to see everyone and was rather overwhelmed with it all.”

Brooke Laboratory opens on World Asthma Day

The AAIR Charity and The University marked World Asthma Day on 1 May with the official opening of a Ł3m state-of-the-art laboratory at Southampton General Hospital.
The Brooke Laboratory, created and then recently refurbished thanks largely to AAIR donations of more than Ł300,000 and generous funding from University donor Roger Brooke, was formally opened by guest of honour Roger and the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bill Wakeham.
Celebrating World Asthma Day and the great advances made in Asthma and Allergy research by Professor Stephen Holgate and his colleagues at the General Hospital, the new facilities should ensure Southampton remains a leading force in the global fight against asthma and allergic disease.
Hosted by the Vice-Chancellor and the Head of the School of Medicine, Professor Iain Cameron, the event recognised the key roles played by AAIR and University donor Roger Brooke in the development of the Brooke Laboratory. Many of AAIR's supporters and donors attended the event and had the opportunity to tour the Brooke Laboratory and to find out about the specialist equipment used by the University's researchers.
AAIR chairman and top asthma expert Professor Stephen Holgate said: ‘We are in the midst of an allergy and asthma epidemic, yet still, clinical services to help patients with allergy are very limited. Despite this the AAAIR charity has helped Southampton to stay on top as one of the premier research and clinical allergy centres in the UK. The opening of this new laboratory recognizes the huge contribution that Roger Brooke has made personally to our research effort here and the importance of translating our research into patient benefit.’
Phase one of The Brooke Laboratory was completed five years ago, since its official opening in 2001 the single refurbished laboratory has grown to three times its original size and now houses around Ł1.5m worth of specialist equipment, vital to cutting-edge medical research. Roger Brooke has now donated a total of Ł0.75million towards the Laboratory. The former diplomat said: ‘I was inspired to donate to this cause when I became aware of the growing menace of asthma and allergic diseases. As the University’s School of Medicine and Southampton General Hospital are among Hampshire's greatest assets and Professor Stephen Holgate and Professor Donna Davies are both world-class researchers, I thought this is a fantastic cause for me to support. The team is making fantastic progress, but of course it needs more money to ensure it continues to find new treatments and, hopefully, one day a cure for asthma and allergies.’
The event encouraged much press interest and was reported widely in the local press and radio as well as on local Meridian and BBC South Today news coverage.
Many thanks to Steve Shrimpton for his Brookes Laboratory photography.

Strictly Come Dancing Star Camilla Dallerup is inspiration
at AAIR’s Festival of Dance 2007

Click on the photos above to download full size versions.

Despite swapping her dancing shoes for a microphone, Camilla still brought her trademark glamour and excitement to AAIR’s dance extravaganza.
AAIR’s annual Festival of Dance was once again a sell-out success, with a host of dazzling displays from professional and amateur dancers from across the region helping raising over Ł3,000
And their talents even impressed international performer Camilla. "What better way to celebrate the great work of AAIR then this wonderful night of dancing. It was great to be involved in a different way by hosting and letting other performers do the dancing. It was a fun night with lots of energy and enthusiasm from all the dance acts. Lovely to see so many different types of dancing all on the same night! Well done to AAIR for a brilliant night!"
Wave 105 Radio brought their own take on Strictly Come Dancing to the show, which took place at The Point Theatre. Radio presenter John Clayton won massive applause for his Argentine Tango – performed after just 12 hours of professional tuition.
John said the event was a great experience from the excellent coaching with Caroline Pope and Eduardo Bozzo through to the evening itself. “For the first half of the evening, I was merely daydreaming, trying to put any nerves to the back of my mind. Then when our music started up, off we went! The dance routine went like a flash and was over in no time at all. Caroline was a joy to work with and I might have found a new vocation, or at least hobby"
Event sponsors Peter Robertson from Condor Office Solutions said the energy and enthusiasm of the dancers created an incredible ‘feel-good’ atmosphere. “It was a great evening and we look forward to sponsoring it next year”.
Thank you to all the performers: The Fitzell Roberts Dance Industries, The Kirsty Blair McCarthy School of Irish Dance, Leigh Ballroom, Mo’Jive, Tango Alchemy, Feet First Youth Dance Company, The Southampton Phoenix Art Group, Shree dance Company.
Special thanks also for all the generous raffle prizes donated by Condor Office Solutions, Wave 105 , A & A Business Supplies Ltd, Southampton Round Table, La Vista Restaurant and The White Star Bistro, Flemming Park, Russ Berrie, The Point.
Look out for The Festival of Dance 2008.


Click on the photos above to download full size versions.

Mayors Ball - Saturday April 21st
St George’s Day theme at Botley Park Hotel, including table magic and a casino.

Banquet & Ball - 10th March 2007
with live entertainment at The DeVere Grand Harbour Hotel. Southampton Round Table No. 4. Proceeds to AAIR

Mayor Of Eastleigh Supports AAIR
Past events
Sunday March 4th 7.30pm
Winchester Chamber Orchestra Spring Concert at the Point Theatre, Eastleigh.
With Larkhill Choral Society and Winchester Chamber Orchestra. Music Director Gregg Hollister; Leader, Yvette Chalkley; Solo Soprano, Elizabeth Nunns.
Friday March 16th
Gardeners Double Delight A delicious 3 course dinner with coffee followed by a talk by Brian Kidd of BBC Radio Solent Top Soil programme 'Wildlife and Fund In Your Garden'.

CHARITY QUESTION OF SPORT SUPPER

Click here for lots more pictures from the evening.

Our celebrity Question of Sport Supper on October 26th may not have bore much resemblance to Sue Barkers orderly TV quiz but it was a fantastic night out. Uncontrollable giggling, bedlam on the buzzers and outright cheating (mentioning no names) were all part of the antics poor quiz master Ian Wilson had the misfortune to preside over.
Captaining the footballers was Saints favourite Lawrie McMenemy with team-mates Jason Dodd and Nicky Banger. While Hampshire's Shaun Udal was skipper of cricketers Robin Smith and John Crawley. This was also the first outing for the Sports Pundits, Simon Walter, James Rose and Simon Straker, well qualified for a sports quiz courtesy of working as sports reporters. Needless to say all nine panellists were on form, keen to demonstrate their wide knowledge of sporting trivia! AAIR patrons Lawrie and Shaun were particularly brilliant at hogging their bells and buzzers then swiftly referring the questions to their bewildered team-mates.
AAIR director Caroline Pope said: The funniest thing was seeing Lawrie McMenemy frantically squeezing Zebadee the team buzzer. Shaun Udal was in high spirits and the Sports Pundits were under real pressure from the start. The quiz, which is one of AAIRs most popular fund raising events, took place at Southampton's prestigious Rose Bowl and saw all the usual favourite Question of Sport categories plus a few more unconventional rounds such as the simulated golf shots on the play station. AAIR patron Lawrie McMenemy said: After last years event I knew this would be a lot of fun and I wasn't wrong. The crowd and teams were great sports we had lot of fun. Put me down for next year."
For the record: the cricketers came third (also known as last) with the footballers in second - reserving top spot for the newcomers The Sports Pundits. AAIR patron Shaun Udal said: This was a great evening. Of course I'll be looking closely at the team to see who I can blame for our loss, I'm pretty sure it wasn't my fault. The end of evening auction was a real success thanks largely to Shaun who was a natural on the microphone (we're sure there's a job at Christies when you retire) and the generosity of Robin Smith and Lawrie McMenemy for throwing in a last minute star prize of a corporate day with them both at Rose Bowl (lets hope they still remembered it in the morning).
Thanks to the Rose Bowl staff who couldn't have been more helpful. From room set-up and pre-event publicity to service on the night they were really on the ball (no pun intended). Thanks also all those who donated raffle and auction prizes and all those who bought tickets on the night. A big thank you to Ian of Aardvark who set all the questions and compared the evening. AND Magazine took some fabulous photos, as usual, which can be viewed and ordered from our website. This was a hugely entertaining sell-out event and is now firmly on the AAIR annual calendar, we may even have to get a trophy for next year. Look out for the return match next October but remember to book early.

Virtual Formula 1 Racing
Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th September

Those who experienced the thrills of FORMULA 1 Racing in Eastleigh helped raise vital funds for AAIR.
SimRACING offers the ultimate simulated racing experience. Conquering the most exciting racetracks in the world – all from the safety of SRL Race Pods!
During the weekend of 23rd & 24th September, every lap completed saw a 10p donation to The Eastleigh Mayor’s Charity Appeal, courtesy of SimRACING.
Booking essential. Prices from Ł4 per session. For more information contact The F1 race Centre click onto www.driverschallenge.co.uk

Eastleigh Mayor nominates AAIR as one of his three chosen charities.

AAIR is honoured and delighted to announce that the new Mayor of Eastleigh councillor Peter Wall has named AAIR as one of his three nominated charities for 2006/7.
The Borough’s ‘First Citizen’ was elected by fellow councillors at the annual meeting of the Council in May. Following his decision to support AAIR Cllr. Wall and his wife Marian visited our labratories and met some of our leading scientists from The University of Southampton’s School of Medicine.
Cllr. Wall said: “I chose AAIR because we’ve had two very sad deaths of young children in Eastleigh due to asthma and allergy. The very sad thing is these two youngsters might still be with us if we knew more about these conditions.”

Cllr. Wall added that he felt there was a lack of awareness by the general public in realising how serious asthma and allergy attacks could be. He also admitted he was shocked to learn that 50% of babies born in the UK will now go on to develop asthma or an allergy and that the UK has among the highest incidence of asthma and allergies in the world.
Cllr. Wall said: “Unfortunately as these conditions have become more common we sometimes mistakenly think they’re not serious but infact they can be debilitating and even fatal. AAIR has a very important role to play in getting this message across. I hope that by supporting AAIR in my Mayoral year I can help raise, not just money for vital research, but awareness which is also crucial in helping prevent other asthma and allergy-related deaths.”
AAIR fundraising assistant Nicky Williams said: “We are extremely grateful to the Mayor and Mayoress for their support which will make a huge difference in raising AAIR’s local profile and increasing public awareness of our work.”
As well as AAIR the Mayor has also chosen two other charities to support through various fund-raising events during the Mayoral Year. They are the Eastleigh Young Carers Project and QEII Silver Jubilee Activities Centre.
The Eastleigh Young Carers Project offers support to young people whose lives are affected by caring for a family member with a disability, long-term illness, mental health problem or dependency on drugs or alcohol.
Young carers regularly take on responsibilities for a family member. Whilst young people sometimes choose to help out at home, young carers are unlikely to have the choice. This means that they don’t have time to go out with their friends, do homework or just relax and simply enjoy their childhood. This project offers someone to talk to, support and information, the chance to meet other young carers and make new friends and to have fun!
QEII Silver Jubilee Activities Centre is based in a 400 acre country park and provides day and residential activity opportunities for people with special needs. Since its opening in 1978 many thousands of people of all abilities have taken part in the activities.
Activities include a wheelchair accessible pontoon, with boat and open canoes allowing everyone to get on the water, indoor climbing walls, archery, zipwire and rope course. In addition to bridleways throughout the country park, the Centre has its own sand school for horse riding.
AAIR looks forward to seeing Councillor Wall and Mrs Wall at many of the forthcoming fundraising events.

NATIONAL ALLERGY WEEK 15th- 19th May
FIND OUT ABOUT YOUR ALLERGY

AAIR would like to thank one of our top allergy experts, professor Martin Church and Southampton Mayor Cllr Edwina Cooke for helping us mark National Allergy week on 15th May.
Both helped AAIR stage a one-off FREE allergy information evening, where people from Hampshire were invited to learn more about their asthma and allergies.
Cllr. Cooke kindly hosted the evening at the beautiful Mayor’s Parlour in Southampton’s Civic Centre, while Professor Church provided an entertaining and informative presentation. The format of humour and simple diagrams made even the most complicated aspects of allergies and asthma easy to understand. The presentation was followed by a question and answer session.
Professor Church, said: ‘The origin of allergy is in the parasite rejection response. What is happening is that the immune system is making the tissues hostile to what it thinks is a parasite invasion. Just imagine the nose in hay fever; lots of mucus production and sneezing!! Would you like this type of reception if you were the invader?’
AAIR Director Caroline Pope said: “Allergies are among the most common chronic disorders, affecting up to an estimated one third of the population and numbers are increasing every year. We are staging this event for free as we want to help as many people as possible.”
This was fantastic ONE-OFF opportunity for adults AND children to get to get to grips with how and why allergies strike.
Professor Church is a Professor of Immunopharmacology at The University of Southampton’s School of Medicine and a member of numerous learned societies. He has also published more that 300 research papers and reviews.

Three Castles Trek

Photograph courtesy of The Daily Echo.

Click here for more photographs from the walk

A bright Friday morning at the end of April saw eight intrepid walkers gathering in Windsor for our Three Castles path Trek. As with all AAIR physical events, the fortunes smiled on us and provided perfect walking conditions.
With luggage safely stowed and rucksacks and drinks, chocolate and cameras at the ready we assembled for the team photo at the gates of Windsor Castle. AAIR mix in only the very best social circles and we were seen off by none other than Prince Phillip who gave us a cheery wave as he passed by in his horse and carriage putting extra spring in our step.
60 miles in four days is tough, very tough, but with great company, scenery, food and drink the event was a very enjoyable affair. Some had very sore feet by the end and the first aid kit was often called upon, but each morning after a few well deserved drinks and a good night's sleep, our walkers were raring to go. The threatened rain never did appear and Monday evening saw us arriving in Winchester to sunshine and a reception committee waving banners and balloons. Welcoming us home was the delightful Charlie Dimmock, cheering us over the finish line. We were then treated to a celebratory dinner courtesy of The Guildhall Tavern, Winchester.
Our thanks must go to Chris for leading the walk, Pam, Ruth, Mimi, John, Chris, Wendy and Audrey for making the event such fun. We raised a total of Ł3608.99! Every penny of which will be used for asthma and allergy research.

A Night of Surprises at ‘AAIR’s’ Festival of Dance
Winchester’s Guildhall, Friday March 17th

Click here for many more photographs and a short video clip of the Festival of Dance

AAIR’s sell-out Festival of Dance proved a huge success thanks to a string of fantastic performances and our wonderful host for the evening – celebrity chef James Martin.
Among the evening’s amazing displays were a number of unexpected highlights, including an impromptu performance by James. The star sent a taxi to his Winchester home to collect his ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ cape, then put on a dazzling solo display of Pasadoble as a surprise treat.
James said: “It’s great to be involved in a local event such as this and one that benefits a great cause. I thought after Strictly Come Dancing my Dancing shoes would be collecting dust!”
A particularly ‘huge’ entrance was made by ‘Sumo’ dancers Steve and Debbie Morrall, who performed the Tango in hilarious ‘fat suits’.
Raising the roof with a show-stopping finale were youngsters from the Blair-McCarthy School of Irish Dance whose dazzling routine left the audience spell-bound.
Ocean’s FM’s breakfast team Richard Williams and Louise Reed won massive applause for their dramatic tango routine – the result of just 14 hours of training with TLC’s Tracie Gooch and top international dance teacher Eduardo Bozzo.
Following their nerve-wracking performance Richard and Louise said the experience had been one of their career highlights. Richard added: “That was the most nervous I have ever been. I was petrified but it was fantastic. Learning to dance is something I have always wanted to do and it was even more exciting than I thought it would be. It's the most fun I've had since I discovered girls. Everything feels a bit flat now, we’ve been working towards this for seven weeks, I won’t know what to do with my spare time now.”
During the evening there was also a poignant tribute to Anuj Panchmatia, 9, who sadly died following an asthma attack in 2004. His sister, Aarti, 14, and her fellow dance members of Shree Youth Dance Company wore beautiful national dress to perform a traditional Indian dance in Anuj’s memory.
Other amazing performances included a glittering jazz display by The Fitzell Roberts Dance Industries, flamenco by Inspiracion Espanola plus tango and cha-cha-cha by Tracie Gooch.
Caroline Pope said: “This was an amazing evening. James Martin was a fabulous host and Ocean FM’s breakfast team showed amazing dedication. Obviously our thanks go to all the dance troupes who put in weeks of rehearsals to ensure this was a huge success and to our sponsors Condor Office Solutions Ltd whose support has made this whole event possible.”
Special thanks also go Emma Williams and for all the generous raffle prizes donated by Condor Office Solutions, Ocean FM, A & A Business Supplies Ltd, Penny Smith, Venture Photography, La Vista Restaurant and The White Star Restaurant.
The event has raised over Ł4,121 towards AAIR’s funding of research into asthma and allergic disease by the team of the world-renowned scientists at the University of Southampton School of Medicine.

Celebrity Question Of Sport Supper was a huge success
AAIR’s recent fundraising event may have been one of the most nail-biting to organise but it was also one of the most memorable.

Click here for many more photographs of the evening

According to feedback from everyone who came – including our favourite sporting celebrities - the Question of Sport Supper was one of most entertaining evenings anyone had enjoyed for a long time.
And, even more rewarding, the event raised a fantastic Ł2,500 for AAIR.
Thanks of course to everyone who came along and particularly our celebrity team captains Lawrie McMenemy and Francis Benali and their knowledgeable (!) team mates Eddie Aherne, Mark Dennis, Tim Tremlet and John Crawley.
Special thanks to Eddie who had to make a mad dash from a 5.20pm horse race in Wolverhampton. Despite arriving a little stressed and with just minutes to spare Eddie was brilliant fun and great company. Also to Tim for standing in at the 11th hour when Chris Akabussi had to cancel at late notice.
Our quiz master and AAIR supporter Ian Wilson put both teams through their paces with some taxing and very funny questions, but in the end it was Fancis Benali’s team which piped to the post Lawrie McMenemy by just a few points.
Lawrie McMenemy, who is one of AAIR’s patrons, said: “This was a very entertaining and intimate evening which was a bit different to the usually charity events and very good fun. Everyone involved put in a tremendous amount of hard work and I am delighted to have been a part of the evening.
AAIR is a very worthwhile cause - asthma and allergies can strike anyone at anytime. A lot of research is needed into causes and cures so I’m sure the money will be very much appreciated.”
AAIR is also extremely grateful for all the amazing raffle and auction prizes, which included some incredible items which money just can’t buy. These included a signed limited print of Shane Warne, a signed Ellen McArthur photograph of her triumphant return from her record-breaking voyage, a signed cricket bat, signed Saints shirt and a round of golf with some of the celebrity quiz panel.
It was lovely to see so many new faces at this event but we’d still love to meet many more ‘friends of AAIR’. You’ll be made very welcome whether alone or with friends. You can be sure the events will be professionally organised but generally quite different to your usual night out. Give them a try, we promise you won’t be disappointed.

AAIR Annual Ball

Click here for many more photographs of the ball!

A huge thank you to all who supported the most glamorous event of AAIR’s fund-raising calendar – our annual ball held on Saturday October 1st.
Beaulieu Abbey in the New Forest proved to be an amazing venue, particularly the Domus - a medieval former Monk's refectory which was transformed into a majestic dining hall. One hundred supporters enjoyed a champagne reception & four-course candle-lit meal and danced until the early hours courtesy of some very popular music choices by Andover-based band 'No Can Do'.
Master of Ceremonies Paul Philp overcame the 'unique' acoustics of the Domus to welcome everyone and stress our appreciation of your support in aid of research into asthma and allergies. The evening was a tremendous success and, thanks to your generosity, AAIR is able to support trials at The University of Southampton School of Medicine into finding new ways to monitor and repair damage caused to lungs through severe asthma.
Of course, special thanks must go to AAIR ambassadors Jan Smart and Jaqui Porter, without their commitment and hard work the ball would not be possible. Although they both deserve a long rest Jacqui is already busy planning a musical evening at Lyndhust Church for 2006 - we'll let you know the date for your diaries as soon as we can. We must also thank the generosity of all those whose kind donations ensured the raffle boasted some wonderful prizes.

Kids Writing Competition Winners
TV's FRED DINENAGE PRESENTS PRIZES TO THE WINNERS OF AAIR'S WRITING COMPETITION.

Click here to view all the winning entries.

ITV Meridian’s news presenter Fred Dinenage joined AAIR to congratulate the winners of our writing competition.
Overall winner Aimee Davies, 11, from Lymington, plus five other category winners attended a special ceremony at Southampton General Hospital where Fred presented them with a host of prizes.
Fred Dinenage said: “I hadn’t appreciate how severely asthma and allergies affected so many people. I think these children have done a great job is helping us understand why it is so important AAIR supports this vital research into asthma and allergies.”
The competition challenged children in Wessex to describe how their asthma or allergies affected their lives. Choosing the winners was very difficult - congratulations and thanks go to all who took part. We will use some of the best entries to help highlight the need for more research into the causes and treatments of asthma and allergic disease.
AAIR Director Caroline Pope said: “It was obvious from reading all the entries that many young asthma and allergy suffers feel people don’t understand how many restrictions these conditions cause.
“It is easy to think these conditions are minor but their affects can be miserable and sometimes even fatal. I think these descriptions and accounts will really help people understand the reality of what it means to suffer from asthma or allergies. Hopefully, it might also help other children in the same position to realise we are working hard to find better treatments and hopefully one day a cure.”
Following the presentation all the children were shown some of the amazing asthma & allergy testing equipment in the Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility based at Southampton General Hospital. The WTCRF was officially opened in 2001, and is a partnership between the Wellcome Trust, the University of Southampton and the Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust and is dedicated to research aimed at developing treatments for a range of diseases and conditions, including asthma and allergy.
Special thanks to our fantastic sponsors of the Competition A & A Business Supplies for donating all the fabulous prizes. Sales director Des Day said: “We’re delighted to support AAIR and this competition. Each competition entry told a different story which shows just how wide ranging the effect of asthma and allergy can be and how much more research is needed.”
The overall winner received Ł50 plus a fountain pen, calculator & artists set. Category winners each received a leather writing cases, fountain pen, artists set & calculator. The runners-up each received a fountain pen, artists set & calculator. Fred Dinenage also gave all the children a special Meridian ‘goodie bag’.

Overall Winner Aimee Davies, 11. Lymington
Age 14 – 18 category Winner Zoe Clements, 15. Isle of Wight Runner-Up Lloyd Andrews, 14. Waterlooville	Age 11 – 13 category Winner Cheyenne Applin, 11 Christchurch Runner-up Blake Cookson, 13 Romsey	Age 7 – 10 category Winner Beth Napper, 9. Andover Runner-up Anna Lydon, 8. Winchester	BRONZE AWARD WINNERS: George Betteridge Bethany Wharton, Sophie Slater Craig Laurie Todd Rattue Harry Titley Aiden Devrell Sheridan Bond

FRED OUR NEW PATRON

We are delighted to announce one of our favourite TV presenters, Meridian’s Fred Dinenage, is to be a Patron for AAIR.
Patrons perform a vital role for AAIR, representing the charity whenever possible and doing what they can to help raise our profile and income by encouraging others to lend their support.
Fred said: “I'm delighted to be associated with such a worthwhile charity as AAIR," says Fred. Until I worked with them recently I hadn’t appreciated how severely asthma and allergies affect so many people. For those of us who are lucky enough not to be affected it's easy to take breathing for granted. But to have to fight for breath must be extremely frightening and is heartbreaking to witness, especially if the sufferer is a child. That's why the work that AAIR does to support vital research is so important.
Other AAIR Patrons include: Patrick Moore CBE, Lawrie McMenemy , Francis Benali, Sharron Davies MBE, Paul Philp, Fiona Phillips, Shaun Udal, Denis Bundy, Ian Botham OBE

ANNIVERSARY GIFTS

John and Vera Edwards from Winchester marked their Ruby Wedding anniversary by asking friends and family to donate to AAIR rather than buy anniversary gifts. So far, donations have totalled Ł670.
The couple were wed 40 years ago on General Election day 1966. John said: “We got married at Southampton Register Office and after the reception we went straight to the polling station so that Vera could cast her vote - still in her wedding dress.”
To celebrate their special day John and Vera were joined by more than 60 friends and family for lunch at Avington Park where Vera, chief guide of the country house, gave a conducted tour. The whole group then rounded off the day with a memorable trip on vintage buses and a steam train on the Watercress Line.
The couple have been long-standing supporters of AAIR. Vera, an asthmatic, regularly holds fund-raising coffee mornings.

GIG FOR AAIR

Young local bands performed a one-off gig to friends and family at Otterbourne Village Hall to raise over Ł500 for AAIR.
The teenagers, aged 17, 18 & 19 all met while at Thornden School but are now at colleges throughout Hampshire and make up the bands: Two Stroke Avengers, AndElsie, Mercury and The Support. The event was organised by Comet drummer, Alex, who thought it would be an ideal occasion for the friends to perform together and raise money for a local charity.

AAIR fundraising assistant Nicky Williams, whose son Luke Williams is a member of Two Stroke Avengers, said: “We were amazed how many people turned up. It was a full house and there was a terrific atmosphere.”

Thank You Bill & Brea
Loyal AAIR supporters Bill and Brea Whitlock from Dibden, Hythe, have donated Ł456.29 to AAIR. The couple raised the money over a five-month period by saving loose change and money usually spent on the delivery of their daily newspaper.
Bill, 69, a retired mechanical fitter for British rail and Brea, 68, a retired British telecom supervisor are regular fundraisers for AAIR. Despite being OAP’s on a pension they both donated well over Ł700 last year as well. Brea said: “It is no hardship really because little and often soon mounts up.”


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