Poole Lifeboat volunteers following in our Fathers tradition

I remember the radio always being on at home, the noise of the constant 'radio checks' and chatter is still something I like to have rumbling in the background of my day. I remember being in the station, the blue cushions, watching the bridge go up and the people stopping by, calling in to chat. I remember Dad having some fantastic friendships which sometimes meant extended sailing trips away with a certain well-known Pub Landlord, Jim Kellaway who was a DLA and other bad influences who are still very much in his life such as Mike Brooks who was also a DLA.

It was rare to see Dad anywhere other than at work growing up, so having the station in his life was good to see and it established those lifelong friendships.

Lily Clark has just joined the crew at 17, she is also third generation lifeboat volunteer following her granddad and dad, her dad is Poole's longest serving volunteer, who she will be hopefully serving alongside

I was lucky as when we were down the station and dad had to go, I could walk home as we live the closest.
At home when the pager goes off, I wake up and shout, ‘bye dad’ and go back to sleep thinking, he will be out all night and when dad was coxswain on the Tyne we would listen for the engines rumble, I miss the Tyne.

Low water shouts, in the late afternoon we remember really well as when dad went off, we would switch TV channels and watch ‘The Simpsons’ the radio would be on and we would listen for the crew list, if they said number 1, mum said we were alright and could watch the whole episode.

I don’t think I can have a better teacher then my dad,‘number 1’, to share his knowledge, the crew have made me feel very welcome, though Poole lifeboat has always been my 2nd home and I know granddad would be proud too'.

Lily's dad Jon Clark's memories are very different from Lily's. Jon has seen a lot of changes during his time and he served alongside his dad John Clark.

'I remember that we had a telephone downstairs and a telephone installed in my mum and dad’s bedroom, this was a long time before pagers and the Hon Sec would telephone the crew individually when there was a ‘Shout’. Dad would get dressed and head off in his car and if the wind was in the right direction, 20 minutes later you could hear the Detroit engines start up on the Waveney, then straining you ears as it headed off down the harbour. When I joined the crew and my dad was 2nd Coxswain, we joked that we saved the RNLI money as you got two crew for one phone call.

The crew I grew up with and looked up to were classed as my ‘Uncles’ and there was lots of banter, I spent my youth polishing the brass, cleaning the boats, firing the maroons and one summer with Bobby Ide, we learnt how to swim off the back of the Dory inshore Lifeboat.

I absorbed so much life boating from the old boys, there was some real characters and great role models like my godfather Dave Coles, I studied paper charts and dead reckoning as it was pre GPS, we never had personal kit, everything was shared as there was only one set of kit for each boat, there was no drying rooms or heaters and putting on wet kit was something you don’t forget.

I remember when dad served at the Old lifeboat Museum and if we were down there and the lifeboat launched, he would tell me ‘go up the old wooden stairs in the loft and wait’, whilst I was there I would untangle the rocket lines and look out the window, waiting for them to come back'.


Ed Davies shared his recollections of his dad, Glyn Davis who was a Helm at Aberdyfi, which is a small idyllic coastal village in west Wales. Ed is now a Helm at Poole lifeboat and works at the RNLI as a Senior Naval Architect

Ed received a special father’s day present (as did some of the other Dads), a drawing by our station illustrator (we have just created that role) Gemma Gill, who captured succinctly,what it is like to be a lifeboat kid, kind of in awe of what your dad does but its the family norm, just matter-of-factly on call, every day, there to help people. What a great fathers day present, the image of Ed with his young children maybe the next generation of lifesavers?

Living with the lifeboat, growing up with a pager and a commitment in your day to day life is something that is special and I think Lily sums it up;

'Its just there when you are growing up and then the pager can be embarrassing I remember it going off when we were in the school hall, at a DoE presentation evening, it sounded so loud and dad had to go through all the people to get out of the ‘silent’ hall, not my best memory but now I am older, I get it and I understand that he makes a difference and he saves lives, how many can say that about their dads.

Happy Fathers day and thank you dads for all that you do and thank you lifeboat kids for sharing them, unconditionally.