Hoylake RNLI invites community to help save lives at sea at Mayday car wash
Wirral motorists are being invited to have their cars washed by lifesaving volunteers in support of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's national Mayday fundraiser.
Organised by Hoylake RNLI, the event will see the volunteer lifeboat crew donning their distinctive yellow wellies as they clean visitors’ cars at the lifeboat station on Hoylake promenade for just £5 per vehicle. The Mayday car wash takes place on Sunday 12 May between 10am and 1pm, with the lifeboat crew hoping to raise £1,000 for the lifesaving charity.
The RNLI’s national Mayday fundraiser began on 1 May and will run for the whole of the month at hundreds of locations around the UK and Ireland. This year the RNLI hopes to raise a total of £700,000 through Mayday, which will be used to fund essential kit for the charity’s selfless volunteer lifeboat crews.
Andy Dodd, Hoylake RNLI lifeboat Coxswain, says: ‘RNLI crews around the UK and Ireland will drop everything to go and save lives at sea when they get the call. Their kit protects them against extreme conditions, gives them a firm footing on unsteady surfaces, and shields them from injury. The Mayday campaign is our own call for help as we rely on the generosity of the public and especially the local community to fund this vital kit.’
'We look forward to welcoming the community to our Mayday Car Wash, where they can be sure their cars will leave looking shipshape as they help support RNLI crews. This event has become more popular each year and in 2018 we washed 152 vehicles and raised a fantastic £1115.’
Money raised through Mayday fundraising events will help RNLI lifeboat crews to face the harshest conditions at sea with the best kit possible. It currently costs £2,161 to provide one all-weather lifeboat crew member with all the kit they need when responding to the call for help.
Anyone wishing to get involved in the Mayday campaign can visit RNLI.org/mayday to register for a free fundraising pack. The pack provides a host of fundraising ideas, such as encouraging friends and colleagues to plan a wear-yellow fundraiser, getting sponsored to run, walk or cycle, cooking up some yellow-themed bakes to sell or even getting together to lift the weight of a 32 tonne Tamar class lifeboat.
Buying a yellow welly pin badge at events or from local RNLI shops also helps raise funds towards the Mayday target and people are being encouraged to show support on social media, joining the conversation using the hashtag #MaydayEveryDay.
The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea. Its 4,900 volunteer lifeboat crew members provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the UK and Irish coasts.
In 2018, Hoylake RNLI volunteers launched 39 times, assisting 23 people and two dogs and saving one life from drowning.
RNLI media contacts
For more information, please contact Dan Whiteley, Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer, on 07799 851 316 or [email protected]. Alternatively, call the RNLI Press Office on 01202 336789 or email [email protected].
Key facts about the RNLI
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.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, X, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.
Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.