RNLI Kessock receive £2,500 in memory of Black Isle fisherman
RNLI Kessock receive £2,500 in memory of Black Isle fisherman
Lifeboats News Release
Kessock lifeboat volunteers received a vital donation earlier this week when they accepted a cheque for £2,500 from local businessman Blair Smith after a fundraising car wash held in memory of missing Black Isle fisherman, Craig Reid.
Craig was lost overboard the Avoch registered fishing boat Apollo on 18 April while it was fishing 20 miles north west of Orkney.
Stromness lifeboat was launched to start searching for Craig, but was turned back after they encountered very rough seas and high winds.
When he was home from the fishing Craig would sometimes work for Blair, owner of Highland Premier Valet. Talking about why he decided to hold the car wash Blair said ‘Craig was hugely liked, a hard worker and a genuinely nice guy. There isn’t anyone I know who didn’t like him. Craig came to me to offer his help washing cars, so giving something back to the family was the least I could do’.
Customers were asked for a donation to get their car washed on Saturday 21 May at the Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club car park.
Speaking about receiving the donation on behalf of the RNLI, volunteer Helmsman Stan MacRae said ‘Donations like this are vital for the RNLI. As a charity, the RNLI relies entirely on fundraising and public donations to stay afloat. This significant amount of money is enough to train a volunteer crew member at Kessock for a year and provide them with a significant amount of their vital safety kit. I want to thank Blair and the Reid family for this very generous donation’.
Since he was lost overboard, Craig’s family and friends have done several fundraising events to help organisations that support family of fishermen lost at sea.
Speaking about the RNLI, Craig’s fiancé, Laura Johnson said ‘The RNLI is always there when you need them. It’s not often that the RNLI have to turn back from a shout, but as a charity they need all the help they can get and so anything we can do to help them is our way of saying thank you’
Craig Reid’s brother, Stevie added ‘On behalf of all the family we want to thank the RNLI, in particular the Stromness crew for what they do and for all the support we’ve received over the past few months’.
In 2015 RNLI lifeboats in Scotland launched 17 times in winds in excess of force 7 (38mph)
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Attached pictures show RNLI Kessock volunteers receiving a cheque for £2,500 in memory in missing fisherman Craig Reid. Credit: RNLI/Dan Holland
Picture 1 shows: Back row L to R Jon Ashburner, Stevie Reid, Laura Johnson. Front row L to R Rob Bashford, Blair Smith, Stan MacRae
Picture 2 shows: Back row L to R Jon Ashburner, Blair Smith, Rob Bashford. Front row L to R Stevie Reid, Laura Johnson, Stan MacRae.
Picture 3 shows: L to R Blair Smith, Jon Ashburner, Stevie Reid, Laura Johnson, Stan MacRae, Rob Bashford.
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.
