Out on the water, the year-round job of volunteers with Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue - Station 10 is to keep people afloat.
But on one day on the calendar, the Richmond-based group asks the public to help keep their operations buoyant with a major fundraising event.
On Sept. 12, the loft at Britannia Heritage Shipyard is the place where the public can show their support for the 36 search and rescue members and 10 support personnel who give their time to the community.
This is just the second annual event since the local RCM-SAR unit first hit the local waters in 1988. Smaller initiatives over the years helped with operational costs, but with increasing expenses over time a larger fundraiser was deemed necessary.
Last year, it raised just over $6,000, said Angela Karpondinis, team leader with Richmond’s RCM-SAR, who organized the event.
That was with 160 tickets sold to the dinner, dance and silent auction. This time around, 200 tickets have already been sold, which puts the event at capacity. But, the public can still show their support by visiting rcmsar10.org and clicking the “donate” tab, said station leader, Aaron Harnden.
The annual budget to provide the services of two rescue boats on the waters surrounding Lulu Island — they respond to an average 60 calls annually — is around $70,000, Harnden said.
This year, that is likely to be more, as a refit is required for one of the rigid hull inflatables — the Jimmy Ng, named in memory of Richmond RCMP Const. Jimmy Ng, who lost his life in the line of duty, but also was a dedicated member of the RCM-SAR station.
A combination of federal and provincial funding covers for 30 to 40 per cent of operational costs. The rest is filled in with private donations from a collection of companies and individuals. But when it comes to equipment, maintenance, and some operational needs, the group relies on the generosity of the community, Harnden said.
“Richmond is a great community to be a part of, and in the past, our station has always ‘managed’ to fundraise in various ways,” he said, via an email. “We started this particular fundraising event last year, not only as an additional avenue to raise funds, but also as a way to get the community involved and be aware of what we do and how active we are.”
The fundraiser last year helped the station pay for some unanticipated costs to replace and update safety equipment, as well as allow some savings to help with the refit project — an estimated $55,000.
For more details, visit rcmsar10.org.
