A gathering will take place this weekend as RNLI Porthcawl’s new Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat is named during an official ceremony at 2pm on Saturday (12 September).
The lifeboat was funded by a donation received from branches and guilds and third parties in Northamptonshire. Ian Hunter, Chairman of the RNLI fundraising branch in Kettering, and Kim Matchum, Chairman of the RNLI Ladies Guild in Northampton, will name the lifeboat Rose of the Shires during a ceremony at the Porthcawl lifeboat station this weekend.
The station’s new lifeboat, which became operational in May, has already proved considerable worth, having being used in a search of 22 hours last month.
Phil Missen MBE, Porthcawl RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager, comments: ‘As a charity, we rely solely on donations such as this. The lifeboat is a fantastic new addition to our station and brings many added benefits that our previous lifeboat did not have. The Atlantic 85 carries four crew members, is faster and has a radar on board to help in poor weather conditions. All this means we should be able to reach casualties at sea more quickly and efficiently. We are incredibly grateful for this support.’
The naming is the final act for representatives of the RNLI Fundraising Branches and Guilds from landlocked Northamptonshire. The funding for the lifeboat has come from extensive Third Party fundraising lead by former Northants Area Manager Wendy Reason, supported by the RNLI Northants Fundraising Branches & Guilds. Wendy Reason is now the Fundraising & Communications Manager for West Region, where the lifeboat will be placed on station.
‘It is a honour to be invited to represent Northamptonshire and to name the new boat on behalf of all the fundraising that took place in that area,” says Ian Hunter.
‘It is also a huge privilege to see the completion of the appeal and actually name the boat. The fundraising has now gone full circle from a box of cash to a Lifeboat.’
