Land Rover Training for Int'l Humanitarian Relief Agency

Land Rover Training for International Humanitarian Relief Agency

Extreme Driver Training for St John Ambulance Conducted at Eastnor Castle

By JOSEPH V. KUCA

Good people in service to mankind worldwide being trained by the best off-road instructors around, captures in a single phrase, the spirit of the recent training conducted for St John Ambulance at the legendary Land Rover Experience Driving School located at Eastnor Castle in the English countryside of Herefordshire.

Officially known as the Land Rover Experience Malverns, for years the training centre has been the corporate test-track and proving ground for all manner of Land Rover vehicles.  Eastnor has hosted many international dignitaries for highly-specialized off-road training included a veritable 'Who's Who' of kings and queens, princes, sultans, diplomats and statesmen.

During its many years of use, the test tracks at Eastnor were the primary training grounds for Camel Trophy competitors.  In more recent years, members of the public, more often than not Land Rover enthusiasts, have had the opportunity to get specialized off-road training at this historic facility too.

Last month Eastnor hosted members of St John Ambulance for professional 4x4 driver training at their facility.  The training was meant to augment and facilitate operations for drivers working in remote areas where only bush or primitive tracks may exist.  St John Ambulance is often the only medical assistance available in remote parts of the world.

St John Ambulance, known simply as St John in some areas of the globe, is a common name used by a number of affiliated organisations in different countries dedicated to the teaching and practice of medical first aid and the provision of ambulance services, all of which derive their origins from the St John Ambulance Association founded in 1877 during the height of England's great industrial revolution.

Each national group falls within the charge of one of eight priories around the world, Priories of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem.  St John Ambulance provides critical ambulance services, first aid and first aid training, in many parts of the world where, were it not for their presence, the inhabitants would go without.

Most members of St John Ambulance are not themselves members of the Order, and vice versa, so a major presence of the Order does not dictate a major presence of St John Ambulance. Most notably, though nominally a Christian group, the Order of St John and St John Ambulance are keen to ensure there is no allegiance to any particular religion or denomination, so as to remain available to all.  St John, as an NGO, enjoys observer-status at the United Nations.

St John Ambulance, which operates in some 130 countries throughout the world, works on a more geographical nature than the Order, and has to contend with the differing national laws, medical practices and cultures of individual countries.

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Land Rover Experience Malverns

The Bothy, Eastnor Castle, Ledbury,
Herefordshire, HR8 1RL

Interested in enjoying the Eastnor Land Rover Experience yourself?  Want to experience the true spirit of adventure in its purest form on 5,000 acres of English countryside with some 30+ miles of carefully managed trails in a locale proclaimed as an 'Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty' on the grounds of Eastnor Castle?  Well then, the Land Rover Experience Malverns provides a unique adventure that encourages drivers to push both the vehicle and themselves to the limit.

It offers an opportunity to tackle everything from training slopes to the most demanding obstacles. The terrain here is so varied and challenging that it has been used for decades as a secret test facility to refine and test the off-road capability of virtually every new Land Rover.

Featuring steep slippery inclines, articulation tracks, ruts, open ground and deep water. With spectacular wildlife and stunning views thrown in for good measure. From Buzzards and Red Kites to Muntjac deer, wide open spaces and dark places. All surrounded by the stunning Malvern Hills.  This is the Land Rover Experience Malverns at Eastnor Castle.

The Malverns is also a designated global centre of excellence for 4x4 driver training. Their courses are used to improve the skills of police forces, the military, highways agency patrols, ambulance crews, search & rescue organizations and many others. If you use a four-wheel drive vehicle for the purposes of work, you really should get your essential health and safety training here.

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The Order of St John: A History of Service to Humanity

Pro Fide, Pro Utilitate Hominum

The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem

Knight Hospitallers an Early History of the Order

A depiction of almsgiving by the Hospitaller brothers, from Stabilimenta Rhodiorum Militum, Statutes of the Order, printed in Ulm in 1496. Courtesy of Museum of The Order of St. John, Clerkenwell, London, Ms. Pam Willis, Curator.

This Order may be regarded as the first of the Chivalric Orders of Knighthood that were imitated across Europe, both as religious military foundations, and later as princely awards for allies and supporters. The Order has two mottos: Pro Fide, Pro Utilitate Hominum (For the Faith and in the Service of Humanity). These two mottos reflect the source and purpose of the Order’s life.

During its existence in Jerusalem, the Order provided hospitality and medical care to visitors and pilgrims and was already in operation when the First Crusade captured Jerusalem in 1099. The original Hospital, the precursor of today’s St John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital, was divided into wards and may have had as many as 2,000 beds at the peak of Christian rule.

Through the introduction of relatively sophisticated Arab medical techniques, western European knowledge of medicine was considerably improved and enlarged. This early work of the Order firmly established its mission, which continues to this day.

Today, the Order of St John is a Royal Order of Chivalry under the British crown.  Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the Sovereign Head of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem.  Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is the Grand Prior of the Order.  Membership in the Order is by invitation only.  Members are appointed by the Queen.  Entry is based upon demonstrated personal and philanthropic efforts to support the good works of the Order. 

Since it's earliest beginnings in the eleventh century, the Order has been predominantly a lay order of brethren who seek to do good works for the sick and poor throughout the Holy Land and anywhere there is a gap and a need worldwide.

For more information go to: www.saintjohn.org , www.orderofstjohn.org and www.sja.org.uk .

Members of all ranks are collectively known as the Knights Hospitallers.