Saving Lives over the Labour Day Long Weekend

Every year, thousands of Canadians suffer accidents, injuries and life threatening health issues at home, work and play. Long weekends are great times for "play" but they are also a time when accidents happen.

Every year, St. John's Ambulance volunteers assist more than 20,000 Canadians by providing emergency first aid.

Annually, St. John trains more than half a million Canadians to save lives.

Announcement of Ms. Mairi Arthur as the First Woman Chancellor, Priory of Canada of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem (St. John Ambulance)

OTTAWA, Aug. 31, 2012 /CNW/ - As an immigrant from Scotland to Canada, and the first woman to hold the position of Chancellor, Ms. Arthur is breaking new ground in an international charitable organization that dates back some 900 years.  As Chancellor, Ms. Arthur leads an organization with 25,000 volunteers who support the Order's charitable foundation, St. John Ambulance.   In Canada, St. John volunteers have given millions of hours of service to their communities over the past 129 years.

Mairi Arthur was installed as Chancellor of the Priory of Canada of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem (Order of St. John) by His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada and Prior of the Priory of Canada on June 23, 2012.

Ms. Arthur has devoted 33 years of service to St. John since attending a first aid course in 1979. Since that time, she has served her community as a volunteer ambulance attendant, trained thousands of Canadians in Atlantic Canada in all levels of first aid and emergency medical response, and chaired the Nova Scotia Board of Directors for St. John Ambulance. Ms. Arthur now heads-up St. John Ambulance in Canada, as chair of the national board.  She also sits at the governing tables of St. John internationally.

In recognition of her humanitarian work in support of the Order, Ms. Arthur was promoted to Dame in the Order of St. John and received the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal.

About St. John Ambulance in Canada

First Aid and CPR save lives. As Canada's standard for excellence in First Aid and CPR services, St. John offers innovative programs, ensuring Canadians receive the best quality training. Revenue generated from our First Aid/CPR training supports St. John Ambulance's charitable work at home and around the world.

General Facts:

• Established in 1883 in Canada; roots going back 900 years
• More than 550,000 Canadians receive First Aid and CPR training from St. John Ambulance each year
• St. John community service volunteers are present at more than 13,000 public events annually
• Over 1 million volunteer hours of community service were provided in 2011
• More than 250 Canadians were formally recognized for their efforts to save a life in 2011
• More than 2500 St. John Therapy Dog Teams provided over 180,000 volunteer hours in 2011, offering companionship to those in need of support, or support to childhood reading programs
• St. John Canada provides First Aid Instructor Training in Haiti

To learn more, visit www.sja.ca

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Image with caption: "Mairi Arthur, Chancellor of the Priory of Canada. (CNW Group/St. John Ambulance - National Office)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120831_C3094_PHOTO_EN_17418.jpg

SOURCE: St. John Ambulance - National Office

Ms Arthur lives in Bedford, Nova Scotia. She is available to provide interviews and can be reached at [phone]. 

For more information, please call [phone].