Rye Harbour Lifeboat station was a buzz of activity on Sunday, June 16, Father’s Day. We celebrated by taking photos of the crew with their children and the crew with their dads, some with a long history of volunteering with the lifeboat service themselves.
In the United Kingdom, Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June but it doesn’t have a very long tradition as it was only introduced sometime after World War Two and not without opposition. However, a customary day for the celebration of fatherhood in Catholic Europe is known to date back to at least 1508, observed on March 19, as the feast day of Saint Joseph.
Thailand celebrates Father’s Day on the birthday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej who is considered the Father of the Nation. Traditionally everyone wears yellow and presents bright canna flowers to their fathers. In Mexico, fathers participate in a city-wide race which is 21K and this is followed by a feast.
We celebrated the day with lots of different activities at the Harbour.
There was pebble-painting for the crew and their families and training for tractor drivers and crew. We had a visit from Ollie and his family from Westerham, Kent who came to chat to the crew and look at the boat and tractor. We are always happy to welcome families who are interested in the work we do Saving Lives at Sea.
At 11 o’clock we held a minute’s silence in tribute to the three crew members from the French sea rescue organisation Société Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer (SNSM) who died on June 7 during a shout. The three were part of a crew of seven that had gone to the aid of a vessel in difficulty.
We wish all the fathers in the RNLI in our 238 lifeboat stations around the country and the lifeguards on the 140 manned beaches a very happy Father’s Day and remind ourselves that their support is an integral part of our mission.
Image Credits: kt Bruce .