The Stamford and District Lions Club Message in a Bottle is saving lives, and Stamford residents can get theirs now.

Lions Club is a global organisation with over 1.4 million members and volunteers who support local and national causes, charities and crisis centres.

On top of raising money, they also support local healthcare and individuals suffering with illness, difficulties and disorders.

As a part of this, they run their Message in a Bottle scheme.

Lions Clubs Message in a Bottle is a simple but effective way for people to keep their basic personal and medical details where they can be found in an emergency on a standard form and in a common location – the fridge.

Message in a Bottle (known within Lions as MIAB) helps emergency services personnel to save valuable time in identifying an individual very quickly and knowing if they have any allergies or take special medication.

Paramedics, police, fire-fighters and social services support this Lions life-saving initiative and know to look in the fridge when they see the Message in a Bottle stickers, supplied. The initiative provides peace of mind that prompt and appropriate medical assistance can be provided, and next of kin / emergency contacts can be notified.

More than 6 million Message in a Bottle kits have been distributed by Lions Clubs International (MD105) British Isles to people with conditions such as diabetes, allergies, disabilities and life-threatening illnesses.

The Stamford and District Lions have provided these live-saving tools in multiple locations across the area for local people to pick up.

They can be found at:

• Sheepmarket Surgery
• Superdrug
• Stamford Hospital
• Well Pharmacy Stamford

Stamford and District Lions President, Gill Clarke, said: "They're so important and they do save people's lives." 

All you have to do is pick up your Message in a Bottle kit, fill in your details, such as personal information, allergies, medical conditions or vulnerabilities and next of kin, and put your bottle somewhere safe. The bottle comes with a table that you can stick by your front door identifying the location of your message, so that paramedics can find it in a crisis. Users often put theirs in the fridge.

The club are also rolling out Message in a Wallet cards.

They are the size of a credit card and fit in your purse so that you can get direct and immediate help from those on hand if you have a medical emergency while out and about.

These are being revamped by the Stamford and District Lions team soon, so watch this space for a new-look Message in a Wallet cards.

Contact Stamford and District Lions on 03458 334327 or email [email protected] to get your bottle.

Find out more about the club on their website, where you can also find details about how to join.