02/04/2026
May Day Charity Walk - Sunday 3rd May in aid of local charities and other causes - this year, we are putting on 2 routes, all kicking off from The Grove Hotel, St Davids, (which will be open for refreshments ) Registration starts from 10.30 hrs with the walk commencing @ 11:00 hrs- effectively we all will end up in the Hats & Barrels Solva. Normally at registration, we would ask for a donation of between £5 - £10 per persons - we fully appreciate the financial situation caused by global events, however there is the ability to cover this by getting sponsorship and you can down load a sponsorship form from our website;https://penknifeclub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026-Sponsorship-Form-New.pdf
This year one of the causes that we are looking to raise money for is to enable the delivery of free Paediatric First Aid Training within the local community. Fran Jackson was walking on the beach in Solva with her toddler Elliott at low tide on a Monday morning in January 2024 when the two-year-old went into cardiac arrest. The family had moved into the area just three days before and, with Elliott’s dad back in work, the mother and daughter had spent the morning exploring their new home. They were about a mile away from the village on Solva beach when the unimaginable happened. “We were enjoying the beach, Elliott was pointing out a seagull when she got a bit close to the water,” said Fran. “I went to hold her hand and pull her back and she went down.”
At first Fran thought that it was a bit of toddler resistance and told Elliott to stand up. Then I realised something was not right,” said Fran. “She was gone, completely unresponsive. “It was awful. My brain didn’t work. I was just standing screaming for help, but no one was around. I was hysterical.” Fran’s screams were heard by a lone dog walker that she had passed earlier, off-duty police officer Zoe Williams. “She came running back and completely took over,” said Fran. “She changed Elliott’s position so that her head was lower than her heart. She asked me what had happened, but I was completely hysterical. “She started CPR. I didn’t have much confidence that that was the right thing to do. She said to me ‘I’m an off-duty police officer- trust me’.” Zoe administered CPR for 50 minutes as they waited for air and land ambulances to arrive.
“She got very tired and asked me to take over,” said Fran. “I tried but she quickly took back over saying that I wasn’t doing it right and that Elliott was not going to survive. My technique wasn’t good enough.” Zoe then asked Fran to run back to the village and retrieve the nearest defibrillator. “I said that I wouldn’t leave Elliott,” said Fran. “She said if I stayed Elliot could die.”
Fran recalls that run back along the beach. “I felt like I was running through mud,” she said. “I couldn’t get there quickly enough or shout loud enough. I came back with defibrillator, and she was still pumping away at Elliot’s heart.” Zoe administered shocks and continued CPR until the air and land ambulances arrived. By this time the community of Solva had been alerted to the incident and were on hand to support Fran’ wrapping her up in warm coats, bringing tea and coffee for all who needed it and helping contact her husband.
Elliott was taken to hospital in Bristol. Doctors never managed to conclude why she had gone into cardiac arrest. They fitted her with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). Fran was told that, if it hadn’t been for Zoe’s actions, Elliott would have had a survival rate of five per cent. “It is due to Zoe that she survived and didn’t sustain brain damage,” said Fran. “She didn’t stop. She didn’t waver.” Elliott is now a healthy four-year-old, enjoying life and trips out with her family. “It’ s like it never happened for her,” said Fran.
After the ordeal on Solva beach Fran wanted to make sure that other parents were prepared if the worst happened.
“She started raising funds to be able to put on first aid classes in the area, realising that for many the cost of attending one privately was prohibitive. “I couldn’t help with CPR or put the defibrillator on properly,” said Fran. “Maybe if I had been on a first aid course something would have come back to me. “It was important to me to raise money to give families, or anyone, the opportunity to learn and to have the skills should they be in this situation.”
Through a GoFundMe for her cause, Calonnau Bach - Helping Little Hearts, Fran has raised enough money to put on three first aid days for parents. “I can’t believe how generous people have been,” she said. Her aim is to get funding to set up Calonnau Bach as a charity or organisation that offers free first aid classes throughout Pembrokeshire.
As the St Davids Penknife Club - we are looking to help Fran with this cause and raise money, so that others can attend the First Aid Training Course which is delivering Emergency Outdoor First Aid Level 3, Certified by FFA on completion of a 1 day course. The Instructor is John Byrom and the course will cover CPR, how to use a defib, choking and bleeds, on babies, juniors and adults.
In addition to the GoFundMe page, if you would like to support the causes that we raise money and funding for you can do so by using either JustGiving or PayPal on our website – you can do this even if you do not have a PayPal account – just go in as a guest
So please donate here via this link: https://www.paypal.com/donate?token=0_pSLEaR0HFgG3tds7n7uD4Y8JD_BX1TDZ5tnemmjttGmrgLnQYi_E3zrUFOn8m_FC1lmF1bz4GrJPW4l
All money donated goes to local causes or other registered charities that we raise funds for.
The charity is called " Calonnau Bach - Helping Little Hearts" To book a class please email Fran: [email protected]
Visit Pembrokeshire The Grove St Davids The Hats & Barrels St Davids City Council Solva Community
