Saving Lives at Sea. That's the mission of the Canadian Lifeboat Institution (CLI). For the past 44 years, CLI has provided marine search and rescue and non-revenue marine services in the coastal waters around Richmond, Delta, Surrey, New Westminster, the Fraser River, Strait of Georgia, Vancouver, Victoria, and elsewhere including Washington State. During that time CLI has actively participated in 5,000 incidents in cooperation with other search and rescue organizations.
The Canadian Coast Guard recognizes CLI as a valued part of Team Search and Rescue and serves as part of the City of Delta’s Emergency Services Programme. One of CLI's two active Lifeboat Stations on the west coast is Ladner Lifeboat Station in Delta, BC: home base of Delta Lifeboat (1B-02). The other is Steveston Lifeboat Station in Richmond, BC: home of of Fraser Lifeboat (1A-04).
John Horton is commander of the Delta Lifeboat Station. Born in England 91 years ago, he joined the Royal Naval Reserve at age 16. In early days he apprenticed as a designer and architectural artist before eventually immigrating to Vancouver with his own family in 1966 where he produced renderings for architects in Vancouver. He also started to paint marine scenes and with success in selling his work through a local gallery he was able to focus solely on marine art. Over the years he has produced more than 1,500 marine paintings. His paintings have been exhibited by the Royal Academy and the Royal Society of Marine Artists in the UK. He is a member of the Order of British Columbia.The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), founded in 1824 by Sir William Hillary, to provide day and night lifeboat search and rescue services up to 50 miles off the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland, has served as a model for CLI.
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CLI is a member of the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), which brings the world’s maritime search and rescue organizations together in one global and growing family, accredited by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
CLI provides a variety of non-primary SAR services, including vessel of opportunity, safety patrols, fishery patrols, public boating safety information including Pleasure Craft Courtesy Checks, emergency services to the City of Delta, or tasked otherwise. It also participates in the RCMP Coastal Watch Programme.
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CLI members and lifeboat crews come from all backgrounds and interests, but share, as volunteers, a common concern for people and property through marine safety and rescue. It provides vessels and crews trained to Transport Canada and Search and Rescue (SAR) requirements to assist other organizations saving those in peril on the waters of Canada.
Not directly funded by government, and relying on personal and corporate donations and grants, CLI complements the primary SAR organizations such as the Canadian Coast Guard, or its Auxiliary, Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue (RCM-SAR).
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John Hornton (left) is thanked for his presentation with a donation in his name to The Rotary Foundation's global campaign to rid the world of polio and receives Ladner Rotary's donation of $2,000 for the Canadian Lifeboat Institution, from Ulf Ottho, Richard Shantz and President David Rushton, who served for many years in the Royal Canadian Navy |