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Couple give golden wedding gift to Hunstanton RNLI

Lifeboats News Release

A couple who have sailed through 50 years of marriage asked family and friends to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary by donating to the charity that saves lives at sea.

RNLI/Chris Bishop

Clifford (second right) and Carol (second left) Prior present a cheque for £645 to members of the Hunstanton crew
Retired butchers Clifford and Carol Prior celebrated their big day at Ingoldisthorpe Church Hall, near Hunstanton in Norfolk, on 27 May - the date they tied the knot five decades earlier in 1974.

Instead of presents, they asked guests to give to the RNLI.

And on Sunday 9 June, the couple visited Hunstanton lifeboat station to hand over £645 to the crew.

Mum-of-two carol, 69, said: 'My in-laws always supported the RNLI and Clifford's always been a fisherman, so it's something we've always supported.'

Clifford, 71, who ran butcher's shops in King's Lynn with his wife before the couple retired in 2014, said: 'I was a butcher by trade and fishing's always been a big part of my life.

'I've spent many, many hours on bits of the Norfolk coast, but touch wood I've never needed the RNLI.'

After presenting a cheque, the Priors were given a tour of the station and its craft.

Crew members told how their lifesaving work would not be possible without the kindness of those who support it through their donations.

RNLI Picture caption

The picture shows the Priors presenting a cheque to the crew at Hunstanton. Credit: RNLI/Chris Bishop.

Notes to Editors

This year marks the 200th anniversary of both the founding of a lifeboat service at Hunstanton and the founding of the RNLI.

The station operates both an Atlantic 85 fast inshore lifeboat, Spirit of West Norfolk and the search and rescue hovercraft Hunstanton Flyer.

RNLI media contacts

For more information call Chris Bishop, Hunstanton RNLI volunteer Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer on 07584 147219, Clare Hopps, RNLI Regional Communications Manager, North and East, on 07824 518641, or the RNLI Press Office on 01202 336789.

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, Twitter 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.

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