Cheque mates
MONEY raised by CalMac staff for the RNLI has been presented to volunteers at Oban Lifeboat station.
MONEY raised by CalMac staff for the RNLI has been presented to volunteers at Oban Lifeboat station.
The £1,000 cheque was received on behalf of the institution by branch chairman Mike Robertson, treasurer Les Stewart and lifeboat mechanic Tom Kennedy from CalMac, Captain Mark Scott, master of MV Isle of Lewis and a volunteer coxswain for Oban Lifeboat and port manager Allison McDermott.
Oban’s lifeboat was the fifth busiest in Scotland in 2016, answering 51 calls to those in distress and rescuing 46 people, devoting 1,272 hours to operations and training.
The crew is made up of 22 volunteers, with further supporters taking shoreside roles including publicity and administration.
CalMac’s donation to the charity represented a pound donated by the company for every staff member who volunteered to take part in a recent questionnaire in support of Investors in People – a total of 777, which was topped up by the company to £1,000.
Chairman of Oban Lifeboat Mike Robertson, who was also a long-standing crew member, said: ‘It was a pleasure to welcome Captain Mark and Allison to Oban Lifeboat station and to receive this cheque from CalMac on behalf of the RNLI.
‘These fundraising efforts are much appreciated and go towards ensuring our lifeboats and volunteer crews across the country are ready, at a moment’s notice, to save lives at sea - sometimes in challenging conditions.’
Oban’s current lifeboat is the 14-metre Trent Class Mora Edith MacDonald, which arrived in the town in 1997, replacing a Brede Class vessel which served from 1983-97.