Mersea and District Lifeboat Guild volunteers celebrate 60 years of service
Two volunteers of Mersea and District Lifeboat Guild celebrate over 60 years of service between them, raising funds for West Mersea Lifeboat Station.
On Sunday 30 May two of the volunteers of the guild, Marica Frost and Angie Butcher, attended a short presentation outside West Mersea Lifeboat Station to be awarded with their 40 year and 20 year long service badges respectively.
In the presence of a few family members and volunteer crew Marica and Angie spoke about their time on the guild before being presented with their awards by Lifeboat Operations Manager, Rick Boreham.
Marica was a founder member of the Mersea and District Ladies Guild over 40 years ago. Her husband John Frost, was a volunteer on the crew when the Guild was founded and her son Reuben Frost, is currently a volunteer crew member. She has held the position of Chairperson and has over the years helped run a great many fundraising events including the annual RNLI fete on Mersea Island.
Angie joined the Ladies Guild over 25 years ago and after holding the position of Vice-Chair, she is now the current Chairperson of the Mersea and District Lifeboat Guild, the name having been changed as men were allowed to join a number of years ago. Angie has been a very active member of the Guild helping with most of the fundraising events including the famous tea stall held annually on West Mersea Town Regatta day.
Lifeboat Operations Manager Rick Boreham said: ‘These two volunteers are a credit to the Guild, their tireless work giving up their time to raise funds to keep the station running is always appreciated and they go about it with great humour. Just like the volunteers on the crew, they, and the Guild, are a vital part of the RNLI here on Mersea.’
Lifeboat Press Officer Chris Lewis-Garnham added: ‘This Summer is expected to be a busy one, both locally and nationally, as more people stay in Britain this Summer. The vital fundraising that the Mersea and District Lifeboat Guild support, will enable our volunteers to be fully equipped to continue to save lives at sea.’
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 142,700 lives.
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Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
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