by John Prince
For the past decade, Paul Harper has quietly been raising tens of thousands of pounds for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance by proudly displaying his handmade model tractors – a passion of his since being a young man.
Usually found next to the Floral Hall in Hornsea, 89-year-old Paul has so far raised more than £27,000 with another £2,500 on the way for the lifesaving charity helicopter.
Paul said: “Collecting for Yorkshire Air Ambulance keeps me going. It’s a pity there aren’t a few more people like me to help them out, because the Government doesn’t pour a penny into them.
“My father was a farmer, and tractors have been my life. I started it as a hobby to see if I could make them. For a start, I made three aeroplanes and mounted them to the end of my garage.
“There’s a Spitfire, a Lancaster bomber and a Vulcan, and people took a lot of pictures of them. A young lad took some photos into his school and that made my day.”
Paul is now losing his eyesight and does not have his driving licence any more, so he’s stopped travelling around to events and stays local.
He added: “I never ask for a donation. It’s up to people what to donate. I’ve been doing it for ten years and I used to go all over before I lost my licence, which is killing me because I’ve driven tractors since I was five years old.
“I started making these in about 2014. In 2016, I was on holiday with my wife and we saw a bad accident with a car and a motorbike. They put the motorbike rider into an ambulance and took him to the helicopter.
“We were right behind it and saw everything that happened. So my wife said, ‘Why don’t you start and collect for the air ambulance?’ So I started collecting.
“When I first started, my target was £1,000. I enjoy doing it and meeting people.
“It was costing £19,000 a day to put two air ambulances up. The Yorkshire Air Ambulance has three that they use on a rota.
“I make the tractors with proper wheels with proper treads and everything. I’ve worked on them all my life. It’s bliss.”
Paul is usually at the Floral Hall most Fridays.
To donate to the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, go to yorkshireairambulance.org.uk.