posted on March 14th, 2024
Bangor RNLI Celebrate 200 Years at Westminster Abbey
Last week, some of the volunteers from Bangor RNLI travelled to Westminster Abbey to attend a service in celebration of their 200th anniversary.
The RNLI, the charity that Saves Lives at Sea, has been saving lives for just over 200 years. At the celebration, founder, Sir William Hilary, was remembered for having the vision for a lifeboat service around the UK and Ireland, with crews ready to risk their own lives to save others in peril, which the RNLI continue to fulfil.
They also commemorated the RNLI’s remarkable lifesaving history, the achievements, and the commitment of all those who have been involved with the charity over the past two centuries.
The service was conducted by The Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle KVCO MBE, Dean of Westminster, and attended by His Royal Highness, the Duke of Kent, President of the RNLI. Also in attendance were Mark Dowie, Chief Executive, RNLI and Paddy McLoughlin, Trustee, RNLI.
During the service, the congregation of over 1,700 people gave thanks for the lifesaving work carried out since the charity was founded and those who have been lost were remembered along with those who were saved. One of the readings was a poem written and read by Eleanor Hooker, Helm, Lough Derg, RNLI entitled ‘Float to Live’. Martin Stephen, a survivor, read an extract from Sir William Hillary’s ‘Appeal to the Nation’.
For more information on the RNLI, visit: rnli.org.
