By Hollie Harris
So it ends another season finished and from our three beaches Peregian, Sunshine Beach and Noosa Heads we are proud to announce no lives lost in our patrolled areas.
There have been many achievements during the season buy perhaps one of the most outstanding has been the increase in IRB driver and crew membership.
With all three clubs being adjacent to unpatrolled beaches, the demands for courtesy patrols plus the ever increasing number of tourists, the number of incidents requiring IRB response will undoubtedly be on the increase.
However the most pleasing aspect of the crew increase is the fact that once experienced some drivers and crewies will undoubtedly turn their attention to the 24 hour call out emergency response team.
As stated before this is not a job for the faint-hearted as many emergencies occur middle of the night and in weather and sea conditions that will make many of our volunteer wish they had stuck to the playing fields of cricket and athletics.
On Sunday at 10am Sunshine Beach played host to Queensland Surf Life Savings Memorial Service remembering those lost in Queensland waters and also in remembrance of the surf life saving members who are no longer with us.
From a personal point I could not help but reflect of the outstanding contribution made by the late Noosa Club Captain Dave O’Donnell, whose experimenting with the extended bathing reserve on Noosas Main Beach drew applause from state center officials; Alan Coates for his work in the area of physical fitness and Dave Glassock for his new approach to the basic structure of the Nipper Movement.
When veteran members of all Queensland clubs stop to reflect they too will remember many of their clubmates now departed, whose contribution should never be forgotten.
Many thanks to State and Branch for the gesture and above all a big pat on the back to our host club Sunshine Beach. Well done.
Amongst those in attendance was our evergreen Sunshine Coast President John Thorpe. The end of this season gives John ten years of service in office and over the years the ever-changing face of lifesaving makes the presidency one that is indeed demanding of his time; but when the years are mentioned his remark was classic “If I didn’t like it I wouldn’t be doing it.”
When questioned about goals John said, “The big one for me would to create career pathways in Surf Life Saving that will enable our youth to stay on as Lifeguards or in administration. My years may have been many but I have the support of a staff that is second to none; I thank them most sincerely.”
The name John Thorpe may not be known to many on the coast. However it is this type of lifesaver whose dedication to our core business of beach patrolling, which gives us the safest beaches around the Australian coast.
The best news of all is that he is standing again for office; I know that all of you in the Noosa community will join with me in saying well done to this quite achiever.
On Friday evening at 5.30 some twenty five parents and surf club Workers (volunteers who work with Seahorse Nippers) gathered in the training room of the Noosa club. The reason was to hear an address from guest speaker Erika Gleeson, founder and director of Autism Swim and a holder of a B.A. in Behavioural Science.
During her address, one of many factors that were brought to our attention was that 90 per cent of deaths amongst Autistic children were caused by drowning. For all lifesavers in attendance this really hit home. What would be needed to reduce these statistics?
As Erika continued her talk it became apparent, with her extensive national and international experience in Autism, behaviour support and skill development, that here was a dedicated and knowledgeable lady.
Another lady making her mark as a Seahorse coordinator is Lorna Gardner. With Lorna, Steve and Nicki Mawby feasting on the vast knowledge from Erika it is a sure bet that the future of the Noosa Seahorse Nippers is in good hands.
For Lorna, who, after living in Noosa for some fifteen years, still travels from Byron to Noosa to fulfil her duties with the Seahorse team.
Despite her shift, this lady is still a patrolling member and has also in the past, served as a Patrol Captain. Her main objective with the Seahorses is to run the steering committee. Known as SNIPS, it is this committee that enables her to keep in touch with other clubs around Australia. At present they are working to establish an on-line resource for any club seeking information regarding Special Needs Programs.
Be assured that what you see on Seahorse Saturdays at Noosa’s Main Beach is just the tip of the iceberg; an iceberg that happy to say is now moving around Australia.
Last Saturday saw the end of another Noosa Seahorse season. The ongoing success of this organisation speaks volumes for the support team.
