Lifesavers Wanted
Jennifer Foulds • Published 9 Jul 2010 09:30
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NO matter the weather or the time of day, the crew members of Helensburgh RNLI always have to be prepared for the beep of their pagers.
However, one volunteer says that being a part of the lifeboat organisation, as well as a full-time mum to three children, and holding down a job as a community nurse, is all worthwhile.
Susan Hendry has been a volunteer for the past eight years and her enthusiasm for her past time does not go amiss.
She has always enjoyed being on the water, so joining the organisation just seemed like the right move to make.
She said: "You get a lot of high quality training here and I worked in Accident and Emergency for a while so I can put those skills I have into working for the RNLI.
"It's good fun and there is such an adrenaline rush being on the water.
"It also gives me the opportunity to develop my skills. confidence and I wanted to challenge myself."
Helensburgh RNLI is currently looking to recruit several new crew members who have day time availability.
These can be men or women who live or work in either Helensburgh or Rhu and whose domestic or employment circumstances would allow them to be immediately available for day time emergency call-outs.
The lifeboat provides a search and rescue service to those who spend time on - and in - the waters of the upper reaches of the Firth of Clyde.
So far this year they have launched the inshore boat for rescuing an injured yachtsman to rescuing Bowzer the dog who had slipped into the River Clyde in January.
When their pagers go off, they never know what scenario awaits them, but the first priority is to get to the station as quickly as possible.
Robin Lane, senior helm, has been a volunteer for 16 years, and knows the drill well.
Robin explained that the lifeboat operations manager, Colin Gardiner, in consultation with the senior helm, will select a crew, usually the first three to arrive, depending on their skills and experience.
The crew then get themselves kitted-up while the other crew members prepare the lifeboat for launching.
The volunteers admitted it is always nice to get back after a couple of hours on the cold sea to be greeted by mugs of instant soup prepared by the rest of the crew.
The volunteers all have different reasons for joining the RNLI and they all have different backgrounds, for example Robin is a computer programmer and new member Stewart McKendrick is a train driver.
Stewart became a volunteer seven weeks ago because he wanted to put something back into the community.
The Rhu man said: "I thought I would come down and see what it is like and I'm doing a lot of training at the moment.
"I haven't been on a shout yet because I need a bit more experience first.
"I think going out will be an adrenaline rush.
"It's been great getting to know everybody and the training is really good."
Robin said people do not need any marine experience to join as a crew member, just enthusiasm.
He continued: "The RNLI offers lots of training and I have just got a job at Faslane as a safety boat driver and that's because of all of the training I've done here.
"It's good fun and we meet every Sunday for training - I never miss a Sunday because I enjoy it so much."
If you are between the ages of 18 and 38, physically fit, come along and meet Colin Gardiner, the lifeboat operations manager and the crew during any Sunday morning training exercise between 11am and noon.
This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 07 Jul 10
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