Maketu Coastguard wins national recognition

Maketu Volunteer Coastguard has won national recognition for its services to the community.

The Maketu unit was named National Unit of the Year and Community Relations Activity of the Year at the Coastguard Awards of Excellence 2018 in Wellington on Saturday.

Maketu Volunteer Coastguard president Shane Beech said it was the first time the organisation had been recognised in the national awards.

"It is just fantastic," he said. "We are still on a high."

Beech said the award recognised all of the hard work put into training, community activities and fundraising.

The awards were the "icing on the cake" for the organisation, Beech said.

"It has been a fantastic year. We have been for the last few years raising funds to build our new rescue boat which we launched two weeks ago," he said.

He said the organisation also won the Supreme Award at the Trustpower Community Awards earlier this year.

Beech said the organisation was recognised for a "combination of reasons".

"We are a very committed unit, community orientated, we go above and beyond for our community," he said.

"We would not be able to do what we do without our community."

Geoff Oliver has been volunteering with the Maketu Coastguard since 2005 and said he joined after witnessing "a few bad accidents" at sea.

"I wanted to make sure there weren't more of them," he said.

Oliver had been involved in many rescues, including saving three people who were trapped inside the cabin of a submerged boat on the Kaituna Cut.

"We train hard and we save a lot of people," Oliver said. "We get a great deal of satisfaction from helping people."

Oliver said the organisation was also recognised for its community involvement, including running bar crossing trainings and engaging youth in emergency services.

"I am very proud of our unit," he said.

Maketu-Te Puke ward councillor John Scrimgeour said the Maketu Coastguard was deserving of the award.

"Maketu is one of those places that maybe a small community on its own but lots of people come from further afield to enjoy the water," he said.

"They do an awesome job of keeping people safe and being available to assist in some dramatic rescues from time to time."

Coastguard Awards of Excellence 2018 winners

Community Relations Activity of the Year
Winner: Coastguard Maketu

Unit Support Volunteer of the Year
Winner: Neroli Gold, Coastguard Kaikoura

Communications and Incident Management Volunteer of the Year
Winner: Peter Kara, Coastguard Nelson

Rescue Vessel Volunteer of the Year
Winner: Mike Carson, Coastguard Wanganui

Rescue of the Year
Winner: Coastguard North Canterbury

Unit of the Year
Winner: Coastguard Maketu

Coastguard Volunteer of the Year
Winner: Neroli Gold