Joe Mitchell congratulates Martin Bruce on becoming Chairman at RNLI Rye Harbour
Martin Bruce, already DLPO (Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer), has taken up the mantle of Chairman at a station of which he is proud to be part.
Martin came to live in the Harbour six years ago having retired early from the post of Headmaster at Christ Church Cathedral School Oxford. This was an interesting post in a school founded in 1547 by Henry VIII to provide choristers for the nearby cathedral, a tradition still in place today, four hundred and seventy-two years later. In February 2018 he became DLPO and when Andrew Seymour decided to retire, Martin was offered the post. He plays the organ at the church of The Holy Spirit in the Harbour on an occasional basis and founded the village’s shanty group, the Round Rye Bay Singers, in January this year.
Andrew Seymour was Chairman for three years and was well-respected at the station. He was always professional and was a good listener. He showed a keen interest in everything that was going on and was supportive to those running the station.
Joe Mitchell, ALM, (Area Lifeboat Manager) commented, ‘ The RNLI wishes to thank Andrew Seymour for three years of professional chairmanship at Rye Harbour. Andrew’s highlight of his time there was the arrival of the new boat, an Atlantic 85, Hello Herbie II, and the naming ceremony for it. We wish him well in his retirement, well-deserved at eighty years old. We warmly welcome Martin Bruce, who brings many qualities and a wealth of management experience to this post.’
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.
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