PICTURES: RNLI's Kyle station celebrates lifesavers' combined 100 years of service
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LIFESAVERS who have devoted more than a century of their time to helping rescue those at sea have been honoured for their sterling service.
The Kyle RNLI lifeboat family gathered at their station at the weekend for a barbecue and paella night to thank four long-standing stalwarts of the team.
The men were thanked "for everything they have done over the years" at the evening, which also provided a chance to celebrate "their remarkable 100 years of combined service" to the RNLI.
Last Autumn, John MacRae retired from active service. He volunteered for 26 years starting as a crew member in 1996, one year after the station was formed, before then proceeding to become a helm in 2003, a role which he held until he retired.
Throughout his years of volunteering, he also held various managerial roles within the station including the Lifeboat Press Officer between 2010 and 2013, and the Lifeboat Training Coordinator between 2014 and 2018.
In March this year, there were three more retirals from the station as Sandy Murray, David Macleod and Norman Finlayson Snr all took a step back from their roles.
Sandy Murray volunteered for 28 years, and was one the station's original shore crew, helping launch and recover the lifeboat from 1995 – when the station was first formed – until March 2023. He was also heavily involved in the management of the station over the past 19 years, starting out as chairman of the Lifeboat Management Group in 2004, then becoming a Deputy Launching Authority in 2013 and progressing to run the station as Lifeboat Operations Manager from 2014 until this March.
Norman Finlayson Snr volunteered for 28 years, and was one of the original lifeboat crew and a senior helm from the station’s inception in 1995 until 1999, where he retired from the boat, and became shore crew until 2005. Norman also held various managerial roles at the station including being the Lifeboat Training Coordinator between 2001 and 2004, before then becoming a Deputy Launching Authority in 2005, a role he held until earlier this year.
David Macleod volunteered for a total of 18 years, and was one of the lifeboat crew from 1995 until 2004, when he took a step back from volunteering for a few years due to other commitments. In 2014 David returned to the station to become one of the station’s Deputy Launching Authorities, a role he held until March.
The retirees were all awarded certificates of service from the RNLI to commemorate their years volunteering for the charity. The crew also presented them with engraved tankards as a token of their thanks. Unfortunately, Norman Snr was unable to attend the celebrations, however his son, Norman Jnr, who is a senior helm at the station, was on hand to receive his certificate and tankard on his behalf.
Andrew MacDonald, Helm and Deputy Launching Authority for the Kyle RNLI lifeboat, said: "Saturday was a chance for everyone to come together and thank the four retirees for all their years of service.
"Everyone had a great evening with a wonderful spread of food, and there were many laughs, as stories were told and tales regaled. There was even time for a race between the retiring crew and the recently joined crew, to find out who could put on and then take off the lifeboat crew’s equipment the fastest."
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