Past, present and future volunteers of the Bridport division of St John Ambulance gathered to thank their outgoing leader for his 31 years of service.

Retiring from the Bridport division earlier this year, Tony Nott led the division for 21 years before choosing to take a back seat and the next generation of volunteers. It was then on Monday evening, he and his wife Wendy found themselves surrounded by well-wishers, who also presented some gifts to formally mark the occasion.

“It is really good to see all these members here and to be honest it is a little overwhelming, I didn’t expect this,” said Tony.

“I only lived up the road and just thought to come down and see what it was like. It turned out that I stayed for 31 years. I’ve given up front line operations but still look to help out in the background with some fundraising for example.”

He added: “When I first started we didn’t have an ambulance. Now we work hand-in-hand with the national ambulance service. Volunteers today are better trained.”

Also present for the occasion was Bridport Town Mayor Maggie Ray and former Mayor Martin Ray, who chatted with members and took time to pay their own tribute to the work that Tony had done over the past 31 years. They also thanked everyone involved with the Bridport division of St John Ambulance Service.

Mayor Ray said: “This is just part of a huge thank you to Tony for his dedication. People like him are really the fabric of our society. ”

One colleague who arrived at the same time as Tony was Caroline Rendell, current youth leader and an ambulance emergency transport attendant, who spoke of the influence he had in her progress in the organisation.

She said: “His legacy is the cadet force and the whole division really. He really was well organised.

“He was also always available when he ran the office.”

“He was a driving force in the division. We both arrived in the division at a similar time. I miss him.”