Bespoke Aire Diamond Necklace to Support Life Flight Trust
For more than forty years, Westpac has supported Life Flight. And for more than forty years, clients have trusted The Village Goldsmith to capture their stories and memories with extraordinary, original jewellery.
Westpac rescue helicopter
Grant Elliott
Adrian, our master setter, crafting the Aire Necklace
Anna and Chris from Village Goldsmith and Ian Klinac
This year, Westpac and The Village Goldsmith came together to create something incredibly special for the annual Life Flight gala auction. The evening was hosted by Hilary Barry, and once again we were pleased to lend her some spectacular jewellery for the event. Hilary wore our black pearl and diamond pendant, aquamarine and diamond three stone ring and emerald slab and diamond drop earrings.
Hilary Barry hosted the Life Flight Gala evening
A brand new item of jewellery was designed and created as a special auction item, just for the evening. Inspired by the four propeller blades of the Westpac Chopper, the Aire Diamond Pendant Necklace was designed by Ian Douglas, founder of The Village Goldsmith. Westpac, continuing their amazing long-standing and generous commitment to Life Flight, were a significant co-sponsor of the item.
“Aire” - Derived from the Gaelic word meaning "to watch over" or "care for" - a fitting tribute to the critical work of the Westpac Chopper team.
Meticulously handcrafted in platinum, the one-of-a-kind Aire necklace featured a stunning 1ct diamond, suspended at the centre of four diamond set “propeller blades”, encircled by a halo of collection grade diamonds. We are delighted to share that the Aire Necklace raised $19,000 and the gala evening raised over $121,647.00 to support Life Flight’s life-saving work for our community.
Mike, Westpac chopper crewperson
Life Flight gala auction
Hilary Barry, Anna and Jiana
Westpac team
Commemorative Village Goldsmith champagne flutes
Maria, Hilary Barry, Anna and Tania
Watch the behind-the-scenes video to see our team of master jewellers bring this meaningful piece to life.