Name: Phil McElveen
Age: 29 – still plenty of time till I’m 30
Where do you live?: Cardiff
Do you work? If so what is your occupation? Full/Part time?
I am the director of MW Events (MWE Cymru ltd) and this is a full time commitment, we hire out Audio Visual and lighting equipment. On top of this, I am also the senior technical boff for SET whom I work for during office hours – so professionally I am surrounded by cables, microchips and gigawatts...
Why did you join Mountain Rescue?
The Mrs was hogging the tv on Thursday evenings.
But more seriously, I firmly believe that the more we put into life – the more we get out of it! So if I was ever in need, I hope that someone else could pass me a helping hand. My working life mostly tests the brain and the challenges of mountain rescue mostly test the body – so I have balance!
I’m sure that I have skills or talents that could prove useful to the role, so I want to put them into action and if this means that I can be a part of getting people out of danger and back to safety for example – then this surely has to be a good enough reason to join.
How are you finding it so far?
Fantastic – the team are all very supportive of us “new recruits” and more than willing to pass on any guidance they see fit. We’ve had training in the classroom, in the workshop, in the snow and it has all been a positive learning curve.
What do you enjoy most about it?
The fact that I am learning new skills that I will soon be able to put into practice.
1) The new friendships that are being forged.
2) Being a part of a strong team.
3) Getting out and enjoying the fresh air.
4) Having something to look forward to on a Thursday evening!
And last of all – having one for the road with the team after training!