A VILLAGE is soaring high after raising thousands of pounds for charity thanks to the sale of a homegrown calendar.

A staggering £2,250 has been raised for the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance by the project which included aerial photos of Tollesbury’s iconic landscape.

The Tollesbury By Air calendar was the idea of resident and photographer Colin Rose, of Drone-On Aerial Photography.

Colin, 61, of Station Road, Tollesbury, said he has been doing photography for as long as he can remember, but only became a qualified drone operator in the past three years.

“It’s a totally different aspect, it’s quite exciting. You see things from a different angle completely,

“Back in August, I thought it would be something nice to do.

“I spoke to my other half about doing a calendar and she said I could do it for charity.”

Colin flew his drone high over Tollesbury and took photographs of familiar sights, including the marshes, marina, church, sail lofts and other key locations.

He agreed with the village a price of £10 per calendar and some customers also gave a bit more on top to support the life-saving charity.

Colin added: “I asked the residents, via the village Facebook page, which charity they would like to raise money for.

“The air ambulance became a clear favourite.

“I couldn’t believe it when it went on sale.

“I think I had the biggest queue the Tollesbury shop has ever had.

“I announced I was going to be up at the Square on a Saturday morning.

“I had 200 calendars at that point and they basically went. I had to order another hundred and that was in just a couple of hours.

“I was so busy selling them, I looked up at one point and the queue was going round the corner.”

Colin hasn’t ruled out doing another calendar next year.

“I’ll probably put feelers out next year and see if anyone is interested," he said.

The air ambulance has struggled with funding during the pandemic.

Air ambulance fundraising co-ordinator Clair Mitchell said: “Despite the problems we have all faced over the past few months, our amazing supporters have still found ways to raise funds for the charity.

“Colin’s fantastic calendar is an example of that and we are really grateful for his support. The sum he has raised is enough to cover the cost of a life-saving mission, which is incredible.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant effect on our fundraising this year, with events and initiatives being cancelled or postponed because of the lockdown.

“In order to make up for a shortfall in donations, it is vital that we continue to raise funds to support our life-saving service.”