How many people do you know who would give up their weekends and evenings for free?

In Essex alone, 1,500 volunteers give up their free time for the St John Ambulance.

Ask anyone who works for the first aid charity and they will all say their time is well spent, learning a variety of essential life skills and sometimes even falling in love.

When a close family friend of Kevin Brock became seriously ill and suffered a stroke, he decided to volunteer for St John Ambulance in the hope he would learn some essential first aid skills.

Mr Brock, 22, had no idea his two-year stint as a volunteer at the Manningtree division of St John Ambulance would completely change his life.

Mr Brock said: "Someone that I was helping to care for became really ill and, when he had a stroke, one of the St John volunteers came out and helped him. So I decided I wanted to learn some first aid skills.

"At the time of joining St John, I wasn't really doing anything, it was the same sort of stuff everyday, so it seemed like a good change.

"It was really eye-opening, I didn't know that they did real ambulance work and front-line work, it seemed a bit daunting at first, but after I did a few more shifts I started to really enjoy it."

Mr Brock has been volunteering at the organsation for two years now and has attended a variety of events, such as football matches and festivals. He's also attended courses in first aid and life-saving.

He said: "You don't know what you're going to get on any given day, anything can come in, from a cut finger to a full-blown heart attack."

During one of his first shifts at the charity, Mr Brock was asked to pose as a casualty for fire crews at Manningtree fire station, as part of their regular training.

That was where he met his fiance, Kim White, who has been a St John volunteer since she was eight.

Miss White, 29, said: "My parents were both in St John and met each other in the St John Ambulance camp in London.

"Since I've been volunteering, I've dealt with all sorts of situations, such as fractures and head injuries.

"It's very rewarding when you hear back from the patients and you realise how much you helped that person."

The couple now live together in Halstead.

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