Welcome to your community news for Scotland. For all the latest from where you are, head to RNLI.org/news

Words: Anna Burn
Photos: Nicholas Leach, RNLI/(Lorraine Clark, Kinghorn, Stonehaven, Nettie Wood)

Stonehaven

Action station

Stonehaven have been pulling out all the stops for community and charity over the last few months. Eight-year-old Ruaridh, a pupil at Portlethen Primary School, asked his friends to give donations to the
RNLI instead of buying him birthday presents. To show their thanks, Stonehaven lifeboat crew invited him to visit the station, and to join the crew in around 10 years or so! In 2016, Stonehaven Crew Member Rebecca Sweeney donated her long, red hair to the Little Princess Trust, a charity that provides real hair wigs to children and young people with cancer. And, in December, she did it again raising £687 for the charity. Rebecca says: ‘I hope it helps make a little girl’s world just that little bit better.’ Also in December, crews and their families joined in to help with a beach clean-up around Stonehaven shoreline.
Well done to everyone involved.

Tobermory

FROM GARAGE TO GROTTO

Around 130 children listened to Santa tell a story by the fire, each receiving an individual present, when the garage at Tobermory Lifeboat Station was converted into a magical grotto in December. Tobermory RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Dr Sam Jones says: ‘It was wonderful to host Santa at the station this year and to see so many children enjoy a festive tale. This was a real team effort. We’re really pleased to have done a little bit to support the town’s Christmas lights fund, so a big thanks to all the families who came along to help raise £400.’

Kinghorn

Loony Dook raises over £1,000

If you saw a mermaid in the Firth of Forth on any other day of the year, you might look twice. But on New Year’s Day in Kinghorn they’ve been seeing mermaids, elves, and even giant bananas for the last 8 years! It’s all part of the annual fun family day known as the Kinghorn Loony Dook. This year a record 140 dookers took the plunge, raising over £1,100 for the RNLI. Fundraising Chair Sheona Smith emphasises the importance of community events like the Loony Dook: ‘Kinghorn was one of the busiest lifeboat stations in Scotland in 2018. It costs over £1,600 per year to train a crew member, and this is funded by events such as the dook.’ 

WHAT’S ON

Mayday events will be happening around Scotland in May.
Visit RNLI.org/mayday to get involved.

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Orkney

Cheers to Rescue Beer

All three RNLI lifeboat stations in Orkney are to receive £3,000 each following a donation by Braunstein Bryggeri & Destilleri, a Danish brewery producing a special Rescue Beer flavoured with Highland Park whisky. Kirkwall Second Coxswain Graham Campbell was flown to Denmark by the brewery and presented with the cheque for 75,000 kroner. Speaking at the presentation, Graham said: ‘On behalf of the RNLI in Orkney thank you to Michael, Klaus, Jesper and Martin for all their effort in raising this significant amount of money.’