A WIRRAL schoolgirl has donated a dolphin stretcher to the North West British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) after raising money by making and selling homemade cards.
Elizabeth Gadsdon, 12, who runs the Facebook page The Little Collector – Elizabeth: Caring for Wirral and the World, raised £200 after selling homemade ocean plastic Christmas cards in December 2021.
On Friday, July 21, the Upton Hall School student was presented with a certificate of thanks from the BDMLR team at Fort Perch Rock.
Chris Cureton, North West Coordinator for the British Diver Marine Life Rescue, the Globe: “We’ve followed Elizabeth’s progress with her litter picking and beach cleans around Wirral since she was six so when she approached us asking if she could raise some money for the British Divers we thought rather than the funds being absorbed into the national pot that we would ask for a dolphin stretcher to make rescues quicker and safer for both the teams and the dolphin.
“That was in 2021 but unfortunately after Covid, we had trouble trying to find a new supplier so we had a bit of a delay with it arriving.”
On Saturday, July 8, Elizabeth presented the team with the dolphin stretcher and took part in a training course with the rescue team.
Chris said: “It was great because not only was Elizabeth able to physically see the stretcher but she was also able to join in on a training course to see how we use it. We use a dolphin model full of water to replicate the weight of a real animal.
“It’s a very special piece of kit which is used for that job and that job only and it’s the only one in the North West which will stay in our rescue centre.
“The stretcher is custom built with special handles which helps speed up our response. The team is absolutely made up with it and have already said how much better it is.”
Elizbeth added: “I was thrilled to receive a certificate from British Divers Marine Life Rescue for donating this dolphin stretcher to them. They say it makes it so much safer for the dolphins, porpoises and the rescuers. Everyone who bought my homemade cards helped to achieve this and I can’t thank you enough.”
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