Dartmouth’s RNLI Visitor Centre has been open for six months and so far over 13,000 people have walked through the door and they’ve raised £8,000 for the charity. The Centre has a team of 30 merry volunteers one of whom is Harry Escott.
Harr Escott, RNLI Visitor Centre
It’s clear from the start that 77-year-old Harry is passionate about the RNLI; “Water is not a joke,” he says with a sombre expression. “Hundreds of people across the world die every day. In the time we are sitting here drinking this tea someone somewhere will drown.” Harry has been a key member of the visitor centre since it opened. He volunteers three days a week – which fits perfectly alongside his other hobby – being a Freemason; “I love coming to work in the visitor centre, I really do. My wife says it’s because I can’t stop talking! But joking apart, that is a key element – getting the safety message across. You get to chat to people from all over the world, last week we had a couple from Australia.”
RNLI Visitor Centre
People like Harry are the backbone of the RNLI - volunteers make up 95% of the charity’s workforce.
He has been fundraising for the RNLI for as long as he cares to remember. He’s always had an interest in water, dating back to 1958 when he completed his two-year national service in the Royal Navy. He and his wife Jo (who also volunteers at the visitor centre) lived for over 30 years in the West Midlands and would often sail together. “One day I was skippering a yacht and had to take shelter from the bad weather so decided to call into Dartmouth. I fell in love with the place and Jo and I moved down here a few years later. We have now lived in the town 23 year.”
A new aim of the RNLI nationally is to reduce deaths by drowning around our coast by 50% and visitor centres like Dartmouth’s play a key role. The centre is the first of its kind in the country. Until now most visitor attractions have been attached to a lifeboat station but this one stands alone in the main hub of a town attracting people as they wander along the embankment or get off a boat. The money raised is, of course, a crucial element - as the charity relies solely on donations but the main purpose is getting the safety message across to tourists, shoppers and families.
As part of his duties Harry works with children, whether that’s in local groups like the Brownies and Cubs or youngsters just popping in with their parents. “We dress them up as lifeboat crew and sit them in the D class lifeboat right in the centre of the room. They can pretend to drive, navigate and talk on the radio,” Harry says with a smile. “Children have much better imagination than us. Some are timid at first then you watch as they really get into it, until mum and dad have trouble convincing them to go home! We get a lot of grandparents in here with their grandchildren, it’s ideal for them to come in for half an hour and let the children play in the boat.
Many are so impressed we notice they come in again with another set of grandchildren!”
Whilst the children play their parents or grandparents have the chance to buy something from the shop. Harry says many are just so pleased with the children’s entertainment they put £5 or £10 in the collection box. As well as having fun, Harry hopes they go away understanding the dangers of water; “If they get that from their visit and pass it onto their friends at school, it can make a difference and we have done our job.” When the children leave volunteers give them a badge that simply says ‘Respect the Water’.
The centre has real life footage of rescues from head cams and powerful audio testimony from those whose lives have been saved. There are also photos of the Dart RNLI crew, a bit of history about the RNLI and a large selection of pocket money treats.
Harry, who has been married for 54 years, says one of the best parts of the job is reading the comments in the visitor’s book; “One person simply wrote ‘you saved me’ I will never forget that one.” Before leaving the centre I look at a couple of pages for myself; of the 25 comments I read, 17 mention ‘the friendly staff’. “I think we all really enjoy it,” Harry says proudly, “we wouldn’t do it otherwise. If my few hours each week can help bring in vital money or if I just convince one person to respect the water then I could save a life and that’s what it’s all about.” If you want to get involved with the RNLI go to www.dartlifeboat.org.uk
First published By The Dart July 2016 issue
