Celebrate Volunteer Recognition Day — Honouring the Heartbeat of the NSRI

Sunday, 20 April, marks Volunteer Recognition Day, a day set aside globally to celebrate the extraordinary spirit of volunteerism. At the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), that spirit has been at the heart of everything we do since our very beginning.

The NSRI was founded in 1967 when two men, inspired by a desire to save lives at sea, volunteered their time and skills to start the South African Inshore Rescue Service (SAISRS). The Society of Master Mariners of South Africa donated their first rescue boat, a small inflatable inshore craft. It was a humble beginning, but that spark of volunteerism quickly grew, and the SAISRS soon became the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI).

Today, the NSRI is proud to be a globally respected rescue organisation comprised of 1,509 volunteers who serve at 59 rescue stations and in many communities focusing on water safety and survival swimming throughout South Africa.

“Volunteers are the very foundation of the NSRI,” says Andrew Ingram, NSRI Communications Manager. “They give freely of their time, day and night, to help complete strangers — often in the most dangerous and challenging conditions imaginable. This day gives us the chance to pause and recognise their extraordinary contribution.”

While many recognise the NSRI for its highly trained sea rescue teams, we will soon expand our volunteer networks, enabling South Africans to get involved as volunteers at the NSRI in various capacities:

→ Sea Rescue or Search and Rescue Crew — responding to emergencies on South African waters.  
→ Pink Rescue Buoy Custodian — overseeing the NSRI’s distinctive Pink Rescue Buoys located at high-risk beaches, rivers, and dams across the country.  
→ Beach Safety Camera Volunteer — monitoring NSRI’s beach safety cameras remotely from home (all you need is a computer, a high-speed internet connection, and NSRI training). 
→ Survival Swimming Volunteer — joining one of the NSRI’s survival swimming squads to teach children the fundamentals of survival swimming at municipal pools throughout South Africa.

“NSRI volunteers bring courage, compassion and skill to every call-out and water safety initiative,” says Brett Ayres, NSRI Executive Director of Rescue Services. “They represent the best of our country — ordinary people doing extraordinary things to save lives and build safer communities.”

“Volunteering with the NSRI is a special calling,” adds Ingram. “And whether it’s saving lives at sea, preventing drownings on South African waters, or teaching children how to survive in water — there’s a place for everyone who would like to give back to their communities.” 

• If you would like to donate to the NSRI, please visit our website https://www.nsri.org.za/support-us/donate
   
• If you would like to become a volunteer for the NSRI, please email info@searescue.org.za — we would love to welcome you aboard.