Lifeboat station pays flag tribute as former chaplain dies, aged 76
A LIFEBOAT station in North Yorkshire is flying its flag at half mast and tributes have been paid in memory of its former chaplain.
Canon David Smith died on April 29 after a long illness at the age of 76. He became the Chaplain at Whitby RNLI lifeboat station in 2007 after he took over at St Mary’s Church as the Rector of Whitby.
His first encounter with the crew was when he stepped into help at the station a short time into his new post.
A tragedy was unfolding in Whitby in 2007 after a boat capsized in stormy conditions and all three on board drowned.
Mr Smith happened to be passing the station that day and went inside to offer his assistance.
He ended up staying all day making cups of tea for those involved, the crew who had responded to the incident, retrieving the casualties from the
water, and police conducting interviews.
He brought a calm presence to what was a difficult day for the volunteers, said an RNLI spokesperson this week.
No one had met him before as he had just taken on the role of Rector of Whitby, but Whitby’s Coxswain Howard Fields said he was part of the furniture after that.
Mr Fields said: “He came back the next day, and then after that we saw him regularly, he was our chaplain and then later press officer. David had a knack of always being in the right place at the right time and always knowing what to say. He was very well respected amongst the crew and has been a friend to them over the years, providing emotional support after particularly difficult call outs.
“He was a great listener, calming but he also had a sense of fun too, one look from him and you knew what he was thinking.”
His funeral service is on Friday in St Mary Magdalene Church, Yarm at 1pm. Canon Smith was ordained a priest in York Minster on July 1 1973 by the then Archbishop of York, Dr Donald Coggan. In 2005 he was appointed an Honorary Canon of York Minster.