fundraising

Bennington Rescue may save your life.

No one knows what day will be the day that you may suffer a massive heart attack. You may also not know that Bennington Rescue Squad is recognized by the American Heart Association for its heart attack care and was the first recognized at the Gold Plus level in Vermont. The care that you or your loved ones receive may allow you to survive what many people in other areas do not survive.

Bennington Rescue provides lifesaving emergency care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without regard to ability to pay. It is the only critical care licensed agency in southwestern Vermont and has a long tradition of service excellence. Bennington Rescue provides high quality service. However, insurance and government reimbursements for care are not sufficient to cover the cost of this service, driving EMS agencies all over the country to obtain supplemental funding from the towns that they serve.

This past year, Bennington Rescue did, for the first time, receive payments from the towns that it serves (Bennington, Shaftsbury and Woodford) to cover its operating deficit. However, these funds DO NOT cover the cost of replacing outdated equipment and ambulances. Additionally, the level of future funding from the towns is uncertain. In recent years, equipment replacement had to take a back seat in order to fund day-to-day operations. Nonetheless, up-to-date equipment is important in serving our communities. Dealing with old equipment is now a pressing challenge.

Currently, the replacement of a rapidly aging ambulance fleet and complex biomedical lifesaving equipment is an important priority. Averaging 6,000 calls per year and hundreds of thousands of miles logged annually, the ambulances and equipment get heavy usage. We need your help to have the funds to replace our aging fleet and equipment! Please consider a tax-deductible gift to ensure that our high standard of care remains available to those in need.

Every contribution counts! Help us maintain our high quality of care for you, your family and friends, and neighbors!

Sincerely,

Brian Howe

Chairperson

Bill Camarda

Executive Director