Portaferry RNLI welcomed the Lord-Lieutenant of County Down to their station on Friday evening (6th December) for the presentation of Coronation Medals to seven crew members.
The King’s Coronation Medals were awarded to frontline emergency service workers to mark the coronation of RNLI patron, King Charles III, and Queen Camilla which took place on May 6th 2023.
During an intimate evening for friends and family of the crew, helms Chris Adair and Scott Blackwood gave the Lord-Lieutenant Gawn Rowan Hamilton a tour of Portaferry RNLI station before the presentation. Â
Heather Kennedy, lifeboat operations manager said: “Approximately 4500 RNLI volunteers and staff will receive these medals and I am honoured that we have 11 medals awarded to Portaferry RNLI.
“We are delighted that the Lord-Lieutenant was able to join us this evening to present these medals. We are the closest station to his hometown of Killyleagh and our crew were called upon to rescue a sailor close to Killyleagh just a few days ago.
“I’d like to pass on my congratulations and thanks to all our medal recipients here this evening, Paddy Ritchie who couldn’t join us, and to three past crew members, Colin Conway, David Fisher, and Philip Johnston for their service to Portaferry Lifeboat.”
Coronation Medals were presented to: Helm Chris Adair who joined Portaferry crew in May 2014 having previously working with Belfast Coastguard which provided him with valuable knowledge on the Search and Rescue frontline. His daughter Niamh, his number one fan, can often be seen waving him off at shouts and calling ‘bye Daddy.’
George Toma joined the crew in 2010 and is the longest serving boat crew member at present. Originally from Romania but now settled in Portaferry, he is very much part of the community also being a member of the Fire Service. George has taken part in many rescues over the years, and was awarded the RNLI Chief Executive Commendation earlier this year.
John Murray joined Portaferry RNLI when the station was founded in 1979. His roles have included crew member, helm, tractor driver, mechanic, and presently launch authority. He has seen several lifeboats, countless crews, and many developments in the RNLI.
Jordan Conway joined in 2016 as Shore Crew and is now head launcher, having previously worked as Lifeboat Press Officer for several years. Jordan is an RYA race coach and sailing Instructor running courses at Strangford Sailing Club as their chief instructor and has just bought her first boat, a flying fifteen and is looking forward to competing next season.
Michael Doyle came to Portaferry as a GP in 1991 and took on the post of our station Honorary Medical Officer in 2006. Micheal is called upon for advice in a medical emergency and he performs our crew sea going medicals and reviews.
Terence O’Neill joined the crew in 2015. His first call out to three kayakers caught in bad weather was also his most memorable. Terence is a workshop controller for BMW and with a young family he is currently standing down as crew.
Tory Killen joined as shore crew in August 2014 and has now progressed to head launcher as well as a very capable station administration officer. Tory works for Northern Ireland Screen, a film and television agency and is a talented baker in her spare time.
