Former Goodyear workers donate exercise equipment to Walsall heart charity
Former Goodyear workers have made another generous donation to a rehabilitation charity helping heart and lung patients on their road to recovery.
They have purchased a recumbent cross trainer, costing £6,200, for Walsall-based Heart Care (Walsall Rehabilitation and Healthy Living Trust).
It follows a gift of equipment including five rowing machines and three exercise bikes last year.
Trustees from the 5/344 Branch of the Transport and General Workers Union Benevolent Fund, who worked at Wolverhampton's tyre plant, were invited to see how the equipment is benefitting patients with heart and lung disease.
Rina Guddu, community fundraiser at Heart Care said: “Heart Care can’t thank the fund enough for their amazing gift. Exercise is a crucial part of our cardiac and lung rehabilitation programmes. This exercise equipment will be used daily by our heart and lung disease patients to help them recover from their conditions.
“Heart Care is small much loved local charity in Walsall that has been going nearly 40 years. It is a special place that benefits around 1,000 patients a year, many of whom are older in their 60s, 70s, 80s and beyond. We provide free three-month tailored rehabilitation programmes and then long-term aftercare indefinitely.
"During the lockdowns and health crisis we changed and adapted our services to give as much help and support as possible remotely to our vulnerable patients. Patients were so happy when we re-opened the Centre fully in April 2021 for face to face support and rehabilitation.
“This generous donation of equipment will be used by thousands of patients for many years to come and have a real impact. We are so grateful to the wonderful Workers and Trustees of the Goodyear Workers Fund for their fantastic gift.”
Cyril Barrett, chairman of the 5/344 Branch, said: “In total our charity has spent just over £20,000 on vital equipment for Heart Care during the last two years.
"This is a small charity, doing a massive job supporting the local community, recovering from heart and lung conditions, each time the Trustees and management committee visits the Walsall centre, we are impressed by the warm feeling you see both from the patients and staff. This charity is doing vital work, but it has a wonderful community, family spirit in the centre.
“When Goodyear sadly closed the Wolverhampton factory , the Trustees and management committee of the Benevolent Fund charity wanted to create a proud legacy to all of the ex-members of the TGWU Union by doing projects with local registered charities, both big and small. To date we have done around 120 projects, all with local charities.
“May the decency, kindness and care of the ex-members of the 5/344 Transport and General Workers Union Benevolent Fund charity proudly live on in our community.”
