CHRIS Cameron opened the recent meeting at Boothsmere WI. A four mile walk was arranged from the Davenport Arms, Marton and the annual cheese and wine evening will be held on August 18.

Judy Baker from the Casualties Union was the speaker for the evening. She began by demonstrating casualty makeup on Irene Wilson.

Casualties Union was founded in 1942 and provides trained volunteers to simulate injuries and medical conditions to improve the realism of training in first aid by the emergency and rescue services, hospitals, airport authorities, ports and railway companies.

Members train in three main subjects: staging, make up and acting.

In staging, incident scenes are designed to be as realistic as possible using appropriate props and clothing.

In makeup, the use of makeup creates the illusion of tissue damage, deformity and discolouration so that injuries and medical conditions appear realistic.

In acting, the victim’s response to the treatment being administered is the most important part of accurate simulation.

Judy’s experience as a stage makeup artist drew her into volunteering for them and she has over time become a convincing actress during simulated emergencies, famous for her realistic screaming and the use of rather unsavoury language!

It was a most insightful and fascinating talk. The Casualties Union is always looking for new volunteers.

The next meeting is on July 14 when Shirley Dawson will be returning to report on her continuing research into the Mitford Girls.

Diane Downs