The boathouse was buzzing all day with keen supporters of the RNLI which was wonderful as we had not been able to have an open day for a few years.
Everyone was in for a real treat, as not only did we have our own Atlantic 85 lifeboat but also two Shannon-class vessels from Hastings and Dungeness. It is wonderful how all the stations along the south coast support each other. In the words of one of our crew today, “family.”
The children were excited to see Stormy Stan, the RNLI mascot, arriving on the Dungeness boat. Many asked for photographs with him. Izzy Bolton gave children the opportunity to board the Atlantic 85 and have a guided talk about how it all works and have their photograph taken. We are always keen to foster future crew. Hastings crew offered tours of their Shannon and all those who boarded came off at the end with huge smiles on their faces. Dreams come true in many cases.
The cake stall is always a great hit at Rye Harbour as there are some amazing bakers locally who generously give their time to create delicious creations. Take a bow ladies. Jean Brown baked a cake for guess the weight which Amy Cole won again.
Louis won the guess the number of sweets in a jar. He was over the moon, his mother a member of the crew, less so.
A huge thank you to the Hastings and Dungeness crew who gave up so much of their time today to support our open day. It is always great to see the Shannons in our harbour. It was wonderful to see Rother and Fairlight responders giving safety advice and two of the face-to-face RNLI team who had nine people sign up for monthly contributions. Andi Rivett, mayor of Rye and Rebekah Gilbert, deputy mayor came to wish the station well and to support the fundraising event.
The biggest thank you goes to the team at the station who worked hard for months to bring today to fruition. It is a team effort but it wouldn’t be a success if the public didn’t come to support us. Paul Bolton, lifeboat operations manager at Rye Harbour said: “What an amazing result. We raised over £1,500 today which helps us to carry on Saving Lives at Sea. I am always proud of my team, and it was good to see such a great turnout. Well done Mark and the fundraising team for such a brilliant day.”
Image Credits: Kt bruce .