Lifeboat charity boss vows to carry on in son's memory

Kath Wilson said her son might have been saved if town had a lifeboat at the time

A mother who set up a charity to get a lifeboat in her home town after her son died in a fishing accident 40 years ago has vowed to "keep going" at the age of 76.

Geoffrey Clements, 18, was one of four men who were killed when their boat capsized during strong winds four miles off the coast of Southport, Merseyside, in September 1987.

His mother Kath Wilson said: "I always felt if there had been a lifeboat here Geoffrey might have been saved."

She founded the Southport Offshore Rescue Trust and within a year it raised enough for a specialist vessel and the town now has two - and together they have rescued more than 500 people.

Sixteen crew members have also received Queen’s commendation medals while three have received bravery awards from the Shipwreck and Humane Society.

Ms Wilson said she was delighted when the charity opened a new £1.4m lifeboat station in 2022, paid for entirely by public donations.

Geoffrey Clements died in 1987 after strong winds caused a fishing boat to capsize

And she has pledged to shun retirement and continue working in the hope of growing the organisation further.

She said: "It brought a tear to my eye.

"My ambition was to build the lifeboat house, which we've done.

"I couldn't really pack it in. For the sake of Geoffrey I've got to keep going. I've got to keep it going, keep it afloat."

Crews who have rescued more than 500 people since the charity was formed

The charity has more than 50 volunteers and costs about £80,000 each year to run, with much of the money being raised in the Southport Lifeboat charity shop on Everton Road in Birkdale.

Volunteer Thomas Fitter said: "To see it going from the smaller building to what it is now is just absolutely incredible.

"To be able to maintain the two boats, the launch vehicles, the quads, the station itself, is all thanks to Kath's hard work."

Ms Wilson added: "There are all fantastic. Every one of them. They all do their own bit.

"They all know their places and what they do and it works out well."

The charity opened a new £1.4m lifeboat station in 2022