THE quick-thinking efforts of five local women, who played a central role in helping save a Ballykinlar man stranded in the waters of Dundrum Bay earlier this year, have received international recognition.
Dundrum Coastal Rowing Club’s Carolyn Rooney, Jackie Barbour, Rosemary Martin, Bernadette McDowell and Aideen McLaughlin have been praised by a renowned American maritime museum.
Recently, they received Joshua James Challenge Coins, named in honour of a founding father of the US Coast Guard service, who saved many hundreds of people in his lifetime.
In addition, the women have received a letter of appreciation from the director of the Hull Lifesaving Museum, which is housed in the former Port Allerton US Lifesaving Station, which opened in 1889 under the leadership of James who, with his crews of the Massachusetts Humane Society and US Lifesaving Service and the Revenue Cutter Service, were merged to form the US Coast Guard.
In her letter to the local women, Maureen Gillis, the museum’s Director of Development, praised them for the ‘extraordinary courage, teamwork, and selfless action’ they exhibited during the recent sea rescue.
She also spoke of the ‘great respect and appreciation’ she now has for the local women following their endeavours.
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