Happisburgh volunteers and families join together to mark decades of service

The main point of the day was to mark a new President of the station, following the death of Jack Hall. Cedric Cox, who has been involved with the station since 1967 has been made the new station President. He joined as crew, later becoming Helm, serving in these roles for 25 years before taking on the role of Lifeboat Honorary Secretary (Lifeboat Operations Manager) which he held for the next 25 years. Cedric has remained involved with the Station and still looks after the collection boxes. Philip Smith, LMG Chairman, presented Cedric with his 50 year long service medal and thanked him for all his help and support to Happisburgh Lifeboat Station. He has also been awarded a gold badge from the RNLI.

The Chairman also announced the appointment of five Vice Presidents to show how much their service to the station has been appreciated by our volunteers. They are:

Colin Forder, one of the crew in the early years, also served on the management group of the station.

Barbara Forder for all her support in fundraising over the years.

Peter Poll who helped run the station shop and outsales around the county to raise money for the RNLI; he also served on the management group.

Rita Poll for her work in the shop and support of Peter. Both Peter and Rita have been awarded gold badges from the RNLI for their hard work.

The last Vice President is Colin Fleming, who served as Deputy Launching Authority for a decade and looked after the welfare of the volunteers.

The volunteers and their families then enjoyed hog roast and a chat in the open air.

Notes to editors: Photo Philip Smith handing Cedric Cox his fifty year long service medal

· Happisburgh Lifeboat Station Volunteer Press Officer PHILIP SMITH

Mobile 07766007936 E-mail [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.