Celebrating volunteers to the rescue

Off the top of his head, Randy Brown guesses that he’s been involved with more than 100 successful rescues during his 11 years with Penticton Search and Rescue.

“I like the outdoors. I was interested in this as a kid in Alberta, went off and joined the Mounties and for me, it’s about community service,” Brown said in an interview as Penticton’s search team celebrates its 50th anniversary this weekend.

“I’ve got some tools in my tool kit and bring enthusiasm, strength and vigor to a team made up of a hodgepodge of people, some with physical attributes, mental attributes, and personal attributes. We put it all together and help find people and get them home. It’s so satisfying being tired and dirty and being able to say, ‘we did it.’”

Prior to the early 1970s, when there was an incident, it would be up to the local police detachment to organize a rudimentary, ad-hoc, search. It was kind of like the movies – local people in their pickup trucks.

But today, Brown declares, there’s more need than ever for the services.

“As roads opened up and the backcountry opened up, we started seeing a shift in 2012 and 2013. A new generation started going out to the backcountry. With advances in GPS, there was a push for more people to experience more – mountain biking and hiking in the backcountry. Skaha Bluffs, more people are climbing. It changed the dynamic of search and rescue to where today, 75 per cent of what we do are medical evacuations.

“They’re not lost, they’ve just lost their way. They know where they are, they can’t get out.”

Climate change events such as flooding and wildfires have also added to the list of responsibilities for the volunteers as they assist police and local governments in evacuating residents during natural disasters.

The 50-year milestone will be officially recognized Saturday at Gyro Park in Penticton with a barbecue and series of community displays, beginning at 11 a.m. and running until 1 p.m.

At present, there are 35 volunteers in Penticton – both men and women – with ages ranging between 24 and 74.

With 11 years under his belt, Brown, the group’s official spokesman, is one of the newer members. Several have been with the team for 20 years.

One doesn’t become a member overnight. “It’s not for everybody,” Brown said. “We have a core course of 75 hours which includes medical training, and then you’re on call. It’s not like joining a service club. I tell people, you’re joining a life-saving service. Our members make a lot of sacrifices.”

Teamwork brings a lot of pleasure to members as they regularly work alongside teams from Princeton, Oliver-Osoyoos, Kelowna, Kamloops, Vernon and Nelson.

Saturday’s event will include full demonstrations of rope, helicopter, water, and swift water rescues.

Brown also hopes it serves as a recruiting tool. Although 35 is a healthy number, at its peak there were as many as 50 volunteers.

Records are limited and the group would like to know how many original members there were back in 1973.

“We get thank-you cards sometimes and people drop by and tell us they’re so grateful to be alive,” Brown said. “When we go in parades, a lot of people give us a thumb’s up or cheer. It makes it all worthwhile.”

—————

Afterthoughts

• The best Tina Turner song that nobody ever mentions: One of the Living, a post-apocalyptic rocker from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome that reached No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won Tina a Grammy for best female rock vocal performance.

• I bumped into hockey legend Ivan McLelland, who described the 2022-23 Vees as the best hockey team Penticton has ever had.