TRIBUTE FUND NEWSLETTER

Welcome to your Forever by the Sea Tribute Fund Newsletter. We hope you enjoy reading about the lives of those who are remembered fondly at this special time of year. In this issue, you’ll hear stories about Bruce, William and Tony. And while they didn’t know each other, they all had something in common to unite them – they all shared an unwavering passion for the sea.

Read how your funds make a real difference to

families every day – like they did for one mother and daughter who were rescued by Criccieth lifeboat crew on a family walk. Without the swift action of the RNLI volunteers, their story could have ended very differently.

With the generous support of people like you, in memory of someone you love, our crews will be there at Christmas – and throughout the year ahead – to keep more people safe.

December 2019/Issue 20

TRIBUTE FUND NEWSLETTER

LOVED ONES REMEMBERED

YOUR STORIES

THE DIFFERENCE

YOU MAKE

INSIDE:

Photo: RNLI/N

igel Millard

‘HE ALWAYS APPRECIATED THAT THE RNLI WERE THERE’My dad, Bruce Pope, started sailing when he began working for Thames Water (then called Metropolitan Water Board), and joined the Aquarius Sailing Club in Hampton, Middlesex. He didn’t own a boat then, but always wanted one – so when he moved to Southend-on-Sea, he bought a little dinghy, which he would sail on the River Crouch in Essex. I remember us visiting the lifeboat station in Southend while we lived there, as well as seeing Padstow lifeboat in action while we were on holiday in Cornwall.

After a few years on the Crouch, Dad outgrew the tame waters of Essex – and in 1969, we moved to Plymouth where the sea was much more challenging. He replaced his dinghy with an 18ft cabin cruiser, which he named after me: Nicola, and he joined the Tamar River Sailing Club where he became commodore. Later, his cruiser was traded for a larger boat and as he got older he would crew for a friend in and around Plymouth Sound.

Dad knew how dangerous the sea could be, and always appreciated that the RNLI were there to help yachtsmen if they ever got into difficulty. Fortunately, he never needed to call them out – his only emergency was a time where his glasses fell overboard to the bottom of the river! He supported the RNLI with a Shoreline membership, and always bought his Christmas cards from the charity. After he died, I even found an RNLI tie in his

wardrobe, which my husband wore to Dad’s funeral – a true mark of respect.

For the last 4 years of his life, Dad lived in a nursing home in Hertfordshire, far from the water. I used to bring him his Lifeboat magazine to read – even towards the end of his life, he enjoyed seeing pictures of the sea.

Although I didn’t inherit Dad’s love of sailing, I did inherit his admiration for the RNLI and all it stands for. Whenever I visit the coast, I look out for lifeboat stations and I thank God that these men and women are willing to risk their own lives to save others. I hope to keep supporting the RNLI as long as I can, and I know my daughters will continue to do so too.

Words by Nicola Santamaria

Bruce Pope aboard his dinghy in Essex (top left). Later, he upgraded to an 18ft cabin cruiser that he named after his daughter Nicola (bottom right)

We’d love to hear about your loved ones too. To share your memories with us, please email the Giving In Memory Team on [email protected].

‘ THE TRIBUTE PAGE HAS HELPED HIS FAMILY FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD COME TOGETHER TO REMEMBER HIM’

William always had a passion for the sea. Growing up in Guernsey, and later joining the Merchant Navy, he was always near to the water – or on it!

William was born in Singapore in 1939, and his first experience at sea was on a voyage to Australia when he was 2 years old. Soon afterwards, he was back onboard another vessel to flee Singapore (due to the breakout of the Second World War).

In 1953, William began training at HMS Worcester, a nautical training school, which provided training for prospective deck officers in the Merchant Navy – and he spent the next 30 years travelling the world.

During his years at sea, William visited nearly every part of the world possible. He visited North Russia, Scandinavia, the Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, the Red Sea, the North and South Atlantic, the North and South Pacific, and both the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal.

One of William’s most unusual voyages took him up the Amazon River in Brazil to the port of Manaus, the city in the forest around 900 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean.

Throughout his many years on the water, William experienced severe storms and other challenging conditions. One winter, his ship was the last one to exit the Saint Lawrence Seaway before it froze over – as it always does each year. William’s ship had to force its way through the ice to get out safely.

On another occasion, while on an ocean passage, an aeroplane circled William’s vessel (an indication that the aircraft was in trouble).

It subsequently landed in the sea, and William’s ship rescued its passengers using the lifeboats.

Because of his affinity with the sea, William has always supported the RNLI – so when he died in April 2019, I thought this would be the perfect place to keep his memory alive. The tribute page is wonderful. It’s helped his family from all over the world come together to remember him.

Words by Isobel Sexton

William began his Merchant Navy training in 1953

Mandy Francis, her daughter Katie Holmes and their dog Badger

AS A MOTHER AND DAUGHTER TOOK THEIRDOG FOR A WALK OUT ON THE BEACH ONEAUTUMN, THEY COULDN’T HAVE KNOWNTHEIR REGULAR ROUTINE WOULD LEADTHEM TO BEING RESCUED.

UNTIL, ONE DAY, IT DID Mandy Francis and her daughter Katie Holmes, from Gwynedd in Wales, were walking their family dog, Badger, at Black Rock Sands near Porthmadog. It’s a route they’d walked many times before and a beach they had visited for many years.

‘It was a lovely sunny day,’ Katie remembers. ‘We were walking barefoot, paddling in the shallow water along the beach and throwing the ball for Badger.’ As the family walked along the shoreline, the tide was slowly beginning to creep in, revealing little islands of sand. And, despite the incoming tide, the visible sandbanks led Mandy and Katie to believe the route was still a safe place to stroll.

‘We didn’t realise how deep the channels around those banks of sand would become – or that the tide would cut our route off back to the shore,’ Mandy explains. Before they knew it, Mandy and Katie were trapped by the tide.

Water began to rush in, faster and faster around them. ‘We tried to wade back across the beach, but the current got too strong and the water was too deep,’ Katie describes. Realising they couldn’t get back, Mandy’s instincts quickly kicked in and she grabbed Katie’s phone to dial 999. ‘We have to call the Coastguard,’ she told her daughter.

Criccieth lifeboat crew were paged and the RNLI volunteers quickly launched to reach Mandy and Katie. ‘I didn’t realise how much danger we were in,’ Katie admits. ‘But as soon

as the rising tide cut us off, I started to realise that we really were in trouble. And when the lifeboat came towards us, we just felt such relief. We felt like it would all be OK, and we’d be safe again.

‘My message to the lifeboat volunteers would be: “Thank you so much for what you did for us that day. We’ll always be so grateful.” And I’ll never moan at Katie again for keeping her phone on her all the time! It was a lifesaver that day.’

‘I’ll never moan at her again for keeping her phone on her all the time. It was a lifesaver’

Tony loved to windsurf – and experienced first-hand the vital role the RNLI plays in keeping people safe

‘HE EXPERIENCED FIRST-HAND THE VITAL ROLE THE RNLI PLAY IN HELPING TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE’Tony (Anthony), my son’s dad, sadly passed away in January 2019 aged 63.

He spent many years at sea – as a keen windsurfer and catamaran sailor, he would often spend days down the beach with family and friends. Tony loved it so much he even lived at the beach for some time! He was also part of a dive consortium, he enjoyed windsurfing and in more recent years he took up kayaking too. So when people asked about flowers for his funeral, I decided it would be more fitting to set up an RNLI Forever by the Sea Tribute Fund, in memory of Tony’s life.

Many years ago, in Hastings, the RNLI had to bring a couple of windsurfers (including Tony) back to shore due to broken equipment

– so he experienced first-hand the vital role the RNLI play in helping to keep people safe at sea.

Our son Lewis also inherited Tony’s love for the water. He often comes out paddleboarding with me – and we’ve even completed a sailing course together, so we’re always spending time with one another out at sea. Lewis tried his hand at kitesurfing this summer – something I know his dad always wanted to do – so what better way to remember Tony, and keep our son and his friends safe, than by supporting the amazing work of the RNLI in his memory.

Words by Pip Reed

We’d like to take this opportunity to celebrate all the Forever by the Sea Tribute Funds opened since our last newsletter. We’re proud to commemorate:

LOVED ONES REMEMBERED

Donald John MacInnes • Alan Ashworth • Steve Hinds • Ronald Findlay • Thomas Coupe John Ashton • Simon Templeman • Gerry Field • Irene Atkinson • Jean Owen • John Squires Alan Sutcliffe • Paul Burns • John Gayler • Jeremy Lines • Amanda Mulroy • David Durbin

Ken Hargreaves • Colin Vowell • Agnes McLean • George Clarke • Betty Skiggs • Lynn Thomas Dawn Allen • John Morris • John Pope • Anthony Mayes • Priscilla Powell • Philip Stone

Ron (Harry) Hill • Sylvia Harpin • Malcolm Wright • Keith (Mac) McKay • Jane Vesey Harold and Helen Arthur • John Childs • Anthony (Tony) Green • Nick Lowes • Larry Curry Tony Collingridge • Henry Richards • Jennie McDougall • Leon Dobson • Darryl Goodwin

David Stocker-Harris • David Gilchrist • Peter Lord • Madge Griffiths • Pete Carroll Geoffrey Meredith • Kenneth Pearson • George Frost • Colin Wakefield • Peter Eldered

Colin Howard • Richard Allen • Ruth Maguire • Marjorie Devlin • Penelope Hilling • Linda Morgan Janet Biggs • Charles Flynn • Beryl Halliday • Bruce Pope • William Marshall • Christopher Hurst

Linda King • Graham East • Hilary Rawlings • John Ward • Roy Stephenson • Bill Offord Harold Dilling • James Pearman • Jean Clapton • Patricia Hitching • Clifford Hudson

Hugo Pettingell • Frederick Jones • Richard Norton • Patricia Hamilton • Kevin Bibby • Tony Pritchard Kevin Watts • Rita Miller • Gary Ruell • Sean Kenny • John Potts • Thora Matthews • Linda Fraser Dave Henderson • Jaqueline King • Mark Woodward • Laura Hasell • Geoffrey Bird • Nigel Spong

David White • Philomena Perry • Neil Johnson • Neil Emery • Gordon Greenfield • Else Birch Brian Mirfield • Maurice Griffiths • Derek Chater

If you have comments or questions about your Tribute Fund, or would like to share your story in this newsletter, we’d love to hear from you.

Please get in touch with us on:

Tel: 0300 300 0124 (+44 1202 663234 from outside of the UK) Email: [email protected]

The Giving in Memory Team, RNLI, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1HZ.

RNLI.org/ForeverByTheSeaRoyal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), a charity registered in England and Wales (209603), Scotland (SC037736), the Republic of Ireland (20003326), the Bailiwick of Jersey (14), the Isle of Man, the Bailiwick of Guernsey and Alderney

CONTACT US

Photo: RNLI/N

athan William

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FBTS3/12/19