Central Coast members were a prominent feature at the 2019 SLSNSW Awards of Excellence. The Surf Lifesaving night of nights was held at Dockside, Cockle Bay Wharf on 31st August. We are very proud of the achievements and worthy recognition Central Coast members received at this year’s awards evening. Here is a summary of the outstanding achievements and contributions our members have made.
Paul Duignan – NSW Facilitator of the Year
Paul Duignan has been a Facilitator with Copacabana SLSC and SLSCC for 5 years. He has facilitated the Advanced Resuscitation, Bronze Medallion, Silver Medallion Beach Management and Spinal Management Courses. As SLSCC Director of Education, he has assisted with the implementation of the new TAE upgrades and has ensured the Central Coast is able to meet the requirements for the 2019/2020 season. Congratulations Paul, very well deserved.
Kai Darwin – NSW Young Lifesaver of the Year
Kai has patrolled over 270 hours in the last 3 years and volunteered around 1500 hours for SLS in the same time period. Kai has been involved in our Central Coast leadership programs for several years and is currently the Deputy Director of Lifesaving and radio officer at Umina. In addition to his work at a local level, Kai volunteers for both SLSNSW and SLSA. He has been through the nipper program since the U6’s and has been actively volunteering for the organisation in every way he can since he was a young nipper aged 11. He holds 56 SLSA awards and is a great role model for our young lifesavers and the organisation.
Patrol 12 – NSW Patrol Team of the Year
Patrol 12 has achieved an astonishing 989 patrolling hours this year. In addition, collectively for the club, they volunteered well over 1500 hours in additional time providing coaching, water safety, fundraising, board member duties, education and general volunteering for club events. When on patrol, the level of experience within Patrol 12 means clear delegation of duties and attention to the task at hand. Mentoring of younger nippers and improving skills of all patrolling members is at the heart of this patrol. They carry out regular scenarios and aquatic training sessions to keep on top of their skills. Responsibility is shared, with less experienced members taking on roles whilst on patrol, under the watchful eye of the patrol captain. Through this training whilst on patrol, the patrol has been able to increase the number of preventative actions, reducing the number of rescues they had to perform. Well done Umina Patrol 12, well deserved!
Umina SLSC – NSW Club of the Year
Umina SLSC has continued to improve throughout the year with some very exciting new projects and continuing to strengthen their existing programs. The key areas of focus were on lifesaving, facilities management, club culture, club growth, community and sponsor engagement, and strengthen the management of their club’s commercial and member activities. ·Club building extension and the addition of new storage. ·Took a member centred approach to decision making to ensure they are able to retain members. This included rolling out key programs such as Safeguarding, member welfare, youth retention and accessibility programs. ·Actively engage the community and sponsors. Umina undertook the “ Does the cap fit” campaign which celebrates the variety of opportunities within Umina SLSC. ·To keep the beach the safe, training programs were developed to ensure members were able to use the new technology whilst on patrol. ·Implemented a BOYD program to allow members to undertake skill maintenance and courses at the surf club with fellow members. ·Appointed numerous sub-committees with specific purposes to advise the board on key issues. Congratulations on your remarkable efforts.
