Two longstanding volunteers with the Lough Derg RNLI have been honoured for their years of dedication to the lifesaving charity.
At a recent family day for the lifeboat station volunteers and their families this month, the dedication of former helm Peter Clarke and Deputy Launching Authority Liam Maloney were recognised for their service.
The Lough Derg RNLI station has been in operation since 2004, and from its base in Dromineer covers waters divided between Galway, Tipperary, and Clare.
The crew and members of the operations team also wished to thank their families for their untiring support and understanding of the demands involved in being a lifeboat volunteer.
After the lunch, and on behalf of all the volunteers, helms Owen Cavanagh and Eleanor Hooker presented Peter with an Kimmeridge RNLI Special Edition watch, in appreciation of his fourteen years’ service as helm.
Crew member Chris Parker also presented Peter with a framed Certificate of Service on behalf of the RNLI. These days, his work as a dairy farmer keeps him quite busy, despite his time away from the always on call lifeboat crew.
Eleanor spoke of Peter’s dedication, good humour and positive attitude especially on some of the most challenging Shouts on Lough Derg. She said the Station would love to see him return to the crew when he has more time.
Owen and Eleanor also presented Liam Maloney with a commemorative watch and a Lough Derg RNLI Helly Hansen jacket as a thank you for the six years he served as the Station’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, out of 19 years total volunteering for the RNLI.
A former Headmaster at Carrig Primary School, Liam is also a skilled boat builder and one of the most formidable competitive dinghy sailors at Lough Derg Yacht Club.
He was involved with the Lough Derg RNLI station right from its conception back in 2002/3, when he made the assembly hall at his school available for meetings and classroom training for crew.
He says that as he was outside the age to volunteer as crew, he became a Deputy Launching Authority when the station went live for service in 2004.
Christine O’Malley, who took over as Lifeboat Operations Manager from Liam on January 8 this year, praised Liam for his hard work in maintaining a high standard of operations at the station, and for his success in involving the local community.
