Asked to Ditch Brassieres For Worthy Cause

Wakefield, England-based Yorkshire Air Ambulance has come up with a unique and successful fund-raising strategy... that is akin to a Tom Jones concert. Women are clamoring to give them their bras.

Team leader for the Wakefield area fund-raising group, Pam Lawrence, told the Wakefield Express the unique fund-raising concept "has been well-received with enormous humor in the good sense of raising money."

The charity collects unwanted bras and sells them in the UK and overseas, especially in West Africa.

Yorkshire Air Ambulance recently acquired a brand new MD902 Explorer, with a top speed of 154 mph. (File photo of type shown above; what did YOU think we were going to use for a graphic? -- Ed.) It does not have a tail rotor --- instead, it uses the NOTAR® Anti-Torque system. The air ambulance carries a crew of two paramedics and the pilot, and can carry up to three patients.

The service is entirely charity-funded, and requires an average of 3,500 UK pounds -- around $6,875 USD -- per day to operate.

The charity has a goal of 200,000 bras; approximately 4,000 have already been collected.

FMI: www.yorkshireairambulance.org.uk/index.html