Focus on our fantastic fundraisers: Gary’s story
As a charity, we all know that everything we do is only made possible by our fantastic fundraisers. Whether it’s taking on physical challenges, organising fundraising events or simply making a donation, every penny and cent helps the RNLI to continue its lifesaving work.
Each of our fundraisers has their own story of how they came to support the RNLI, from long-standing family connections to being inspired by a talk from a water safety volunteer. For Gary Noble from Devon, his support began with a truly first-hand encounter with our lifesaving service, after his life was saved by RNLI lifeguards.
In the summer of 2009 Gary was at Woolacombe beach with his family and friends. Gary was in the sea surfing when he suffered a cardiac arrest.
‘The surf was particularly good, and so I did my usual thing, going in between the black and white flags and everything, and it was glorious’, remembers Gary. ‘I remember going in the water, and then the only thing I can remember after that is a lot of noise, and my wife in my ear, just telling me that she loved me and everything would be okay.’
Unbeknownst to Gary, an RNLI lifeguard called Luke had spotted him and pulled him from the water. Luke and his team provided immediate CPR, including using a defibrillator, to get Gary’s pulse back.
"I can’t thank them enough. I’m indebted to what they did"
Luckily, Gary went on to make a full recovery. He and his wife Amanda have stayed in touch with Luke, and met up following the incident.
‘What do you say to somebody that’s saved your life?’, continues Gary. ‘The first thing he said when I saw him was “you look a lot better than the last time I saw you”. He’s a great guy, not only for what he did for me but for other people too, maybe not in such serious situations, but still saving lives.’
‘RNLI lifeguards do such a wonderful, courageous job with dedication, passion and a real love for people.’
Gary was so grateful to the RNLI lifeguards that day that after retiring from his career in finance he signed up as a volunteer fundraiser for our charity. He can now be found on the team at Exmouth lifeboat station, arranging fundraising events. One of his most recent gigs raised over £7,000 to help save more lives.
Gary says: ‘I love it. It’s a wonderful organisation full of wonderful people. I get more joy from doing what I do than I possibly did when I was running my own business.’
Our grateful thanks go to Gary for his dedicated fundraising, as well as to Luke and his team for their incredible work. You can hear more of Gary’s story in our most recent podcast, We Are Lifeguards, which takes a closer look at what it’s like to keep people safe at the seaside as we mark 25 years of RNLI lifeguarding. You can also see Gary speak about his experience in the video below.
If you’ve been inspired to do some of your own fundraising, there is further information and inspiration available on our fundraising pages. And if you spot a fundraiser going above and beyond that you’d like to see in the spotlight, please do let us know at [email protected].