Falmouth RNLI says ‘goodbye and thank you’ to four station stalwarts
At its most recent crew meeting, Falmouth RNLI said goodbye and thankyou to four longstanding volunteers. Between them, the outgoing crew members have provided over 67 years of service to the station and been involved in almost 1,000 lifeboat shouts.
Two of the station’s inshore lifeboat (ILB) helms, Neil Capper – who has volunteered for 12 years – and Tom Telford – who served almost 10 years – both left the crew at the start of this month.
Alan Rowe left the station back in January, having volunteered for over 29 years. He started as crew on the ALB and ILB, before going on to become an ALB emergency mechanic in 2003. After a few years away from Falmouth Station, Alan later returned as a deputy launching authority (DLA) before his final role as Falmouth’s lifeboat operations manager (LOM).
Andy Jenkin, who was deputy second coxswain and assistant mechanic for the all-weather lifeboat (ALB) - and an ILB helm - left the station in February after 17 years.
At a ceremony during a recent crew meeting, outgoing crew members were thanked and presented with engraved glass tumblers by current Lifeboat Operations Manager, Nick Lewis.
Jonathan Blakeston, Coxswain, Falmouth Lifeboat Station said: “I salute Alan, Andy, Tom, and Neil for a collective 67 years of volunteering for Falmouth Lifeboat Station. It’s been a pleasure to work alongside them and they should all be extremely proud of their outstanding contribution to the local community.
“After the past 18 months, it was fantastic for the crew to be able to get together in person, to say goodbye to them all, and wish them well for their next chapters.”
Dedicated volunteers are the lifeblood of the RNLI, making up 95% of people working for the charity. Nationally, there are over 5,600 operational crew, over 3,500 shore crew, 140 lifeguards and 23,000 fundraisers enabling communities to save lives at sea. Find out more at RNLI.org/volunteer.
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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