Buckle offers Following publication of my letter in THE LIFEBOAT of Autumn 1991 which explained I was seeking an RNLI buckle for a leather belt like the one my father used to own, I have been lucky and had a belt and buckle sent to me, as well as a couple of offers.

Thank you to the RNLI and readers of THE LIFEBOAT for all their help. I will, of course, be putting an extra donation into our local RNLI box.

Mr E.G. Duncan Peacehaven,Sussex Tomorrow's crew I was interested to read in the Winter issue of THE LIFEBOAT of Mr Threlfall's Storm Force Club for youngsters who have their own individual Storm Force membership.

Rye Harbour station is also encouraging young people who are members of the Storm Force subscription scheme to get involved in the RNLI.

In 1928, Rye Harbour suffered a tragedy in which the whole crew was lost. As a consequence, there was no crew to man a boat for 38 years, until the station re-opened in 1966. This represents an entire generation gap! Rye Harbour lifeboat crew members Terry Satchell and Rosemary Edwards, together with helmsman Keith Robus, have now set up a 'no-cost' club called 'Storm Force', open to all children in the village aged between six and 16. There are already 21 members! As well as talks and lectures, the children are shown instructive videos.

They are taught about Rye Harbour's lifeboat, the achievements of the RNLI and the dangers of boating in ignorance.

In the three months that the club has been in operation, the children have had hands-on instruction in first aid and have visited Rye fire station, whose officers work closely with the lifeboat crew.

They also arranged a trip to Dungeness where the children inspected - with open mouths - the station's Rother class lifeboat Alice Upjohn. The club is planning future visits to the fast new Hastings lifeboat and hopes to visit the operations room of Dover coastguard.

The children are showing keen interest in the club, which the crew support themselves at no cost to the Institution.

Their ultimate aim is to foster an allegiance to the lifeboats among local youngsters and hopefully ensure that, in the years to come, Rye Harbour station need never again be short of crew.

Memories of a Ramsey crew member The article in the Autumn 1991 issue of THE LIFEBOAT on the opening of the new boathouse at Ramsey prompts me to send you a press cutting concerning my great grandfather William Christian.

He was a mariner, sailing to Canada and America in his younger days, and a member of the crew of the first Ramsey lifeboat Two Sisters in 1868. He died in 1903, his illness resulting from an accident at sea where, fortunately but ironically, he was rescued by the lifeboat near Peel. The press cutting from 1903 gives some details of his life and the early days of the lifeboat service.

Perhaps it will evoke some correspondence from longlost relatives in Ramsey, which I would certainly welcome.

Most probably they will be able to add to the story.

Arnold J. Brown, Shaftesbury, Dorset Extracts from the local press cutting (source unnamed), dated 13 November 1903, are given below: Death of Mr W.E. Christian Shortly after seven o'clock on Monday morning, William Edwin Christian, master mariner, died at his residence, No 18, Westbourne Road, at the age of 58 years.

'Bill' Christian in his younger days followed the sea as a profession in the Mercantile Marine. He was a member of the Naval Reserve (first class) for 22-and-a-half years, and was discharged through having the misfortune of getting his leg fractured on board of a fishing boat. When the first lifeboat (theTwo Sisters,) was sent over here [Ramsey] in 1868, Mr Christian was among the first to volunteer as a member of the lifeboat crew, and has been a member of that noble body ever since. He was one of the crew of the lifeboat Two Sisters when she went on her first errand of mercy a few days after the lifeboat was placed on this station.

The service was one fraught with great peril but was nevertheless successfully accomplished.

On referring to the record at the Lifeboat House, it will be seen that the first casualty necessitating the launch of the lifeboat was the wreck of the brigantine Jane of Workington, from which four men were rescued on 11 December 1868; also, on the same day, the lifeboat rescued four men from the schooner Prudence ofAberystwyth, in terrific weather.

Besides these 'Bill' had witnessed many stirring scenes in the additional 23 lifeboat services in which he had participated.

Pleasure boating in the summer and fishing in the winter was his general routine. But last winter, it will be remembered, he, somewhat against the wishes of his family, took charge of the smack Fay away; and during a storm this vessel was driven to Peel and how, on that occasion the crew of the smack were rescued by the lifeboat, and, when passing from the smack to the lifeboat the unfortunate man had his leg crushed and fractured between the two vessels.

As pleasure-boat skipper, Mr Christian by his agreeable and obliging manner was a great favourite with visitors and was rarely in want of a fare during the season. He was a competent and able seaman, and of a most cheerful temperament..