Tobermory RNLI lifeboat crew receive prestigious RNLI awards
Members of Tobermory RNLI’s volunteer crew have attended a celebratory dinner at Edinburgh’s Playfair Library to mark two prestigious RNLI awards being given to the station, rounding off a busy week of events.
Tobermory Lifeboat Station received an Excellence in Volunteering Award earlier in the autumn following an operational evaluation carried out by an independent RNLI team of assessors. The award, made by the RNLI’s Chairman and Council, recognised the crew’s ‘invaluable service to the Institution’. The citation went on to state that ‘with a committed management team and crew fully engaged in all aspects of the station, your focused team efforts, camaraderie and professionalism are greatly appreciated’. Some of the crew with their partners attended the dinner in Edinburgh on Saturday night hosted by the RNLI’s Chairman, Stuart Popham, and the RNLI’s Scottish Chairman, Roger Lockwood. Meanwhile, a duty crew and their partners held a more sober but no less enjoyable celebration in Tobermory.
Tobermory RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager, Dr Sam Jones also received an Excellence in Volunteering Award. Sam’s award was given in recognition of her ‘invaluable service to Tobermory Lifeboat Station’ and the citation commended Sam for her ‘outstanding contribution’ and for ‘making a positive impact at the station, engaging the crew and providing safe and effective leadership’.
The RNLI’s Excellence in Volunteering Awards recognise the special contribution of volunteers who have gone the extra mile and who make a difference.
Full time Coxswain David McHaffie and Mechanic Paul Gunn have also received staff awards in recognition of their leadership and dedication at the station.
The dinner rounds off a busy week for Tobermory RNLI. Members of the crew represented the station at last weekend’s remembrance events in Tobermory, including Saturday night’s community commemoration, ‘Mull Remembers’ and Sunday’s service at Tobermory Parish Church and wreath laying at the war memorial.
Tobermory’s RNLI shop and fundraising branch along with some members of the crew also hosted a mince pie and coffee morning at the Aros Hall on Saturday 16 November with many local people buying some early Christmas presents and cards and enjoying mince pies and coffee accompanied by Mull’s own Natural Voices choir. This well attended annual event took over £600 in shop sales and an incredible £508 from a raffle and donations.The fundraising branch and shop volunteers would like to thank everyone who came for their support and generosity, those who donated raffle prizes and baked goods, the choir and the Aros Hall for putting up decorations.
Tobermory RNLI Coxswain David McHaffie said: ‘The awards to the station recognise the hard work of everyone involved, particularly our volunteers who give up so much of their free time, not only for training and carrying out rescues, but also for helping to make the station run effectively and efficiently. I’m pleased that some partners of the crew were also able to attend the celebratory dinner in Edinburgh as we couldn’t operate without the support of our families and friends’.
For further information, please contact
Leanne Blair, Tobermory RNLI Volunteer Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer on 07711549609 or [email protected]
Martin Macnamara, Regional Media Officer (Scotland), 07920 365929 or [email protected]
Gemma McDonald, Regional Media Manager (Scotland), 07826 900639 or [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.
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