Blyth RNLI lifeboat officially named and handed over to charity by donor

The D class inshore lifeboat was delivered to the station last summer, but has now been formally handed over to the station by Shirley Brook, the donor of the boat.

The craft has been named Sally Forth, an idiom meaning to leave somewhere safe in a confident way in order to do something difficult. The name was also chosen as ‘Sally’ contains letters from Shirley and from Alan, Shirley’s late husband.

At the service on the afternoon of Saturday, March 23, the lifeboat was officially handed over to RNLI trustee Fiona Fell and Terry Healy, lifeboat operations manager at Blyth RNLI, accepted custody of the lifeboat on behalf of the station.

RNLI Blyth’s chaplain, Reverend Den Harding, then led a service of dedication followed by the official naming of the boat.

After the proceedings, the volunteer crew took Sally Forth onto the water and demonstrated her capabilities to the watching audience, alongside the station’s Atlantic 85 lifeboat.

Terry said: “It was an honour for Blyth RNLI to welcome Shirley to the lifeboat station and to be able to thank her in person for her kind generosity in donating a new lifeboat.

“It gave her an opportunity to see the lifeboat for herself and to meet the volunteer crew who will use it to save lives at sea.”

Inshore lifeboats, most of which are built in house by the RNLI, are designed to be quick and manoeuvrable to allow volunteers to operate in shallower waters.