This year, on Sunday 22 October 2023, the Raglan Surf life Saving Club will be celebrating 50 years of service to the community.
In the early 1960s the potential of Ocean Beach (Ngarunui Beach) was studied to see if it could be opened for public use. As a result, the 1960s Ngarunui Beach Club was formed by an enthusiastic group of surfers, lifeguards and swimmers. This group disbanded in the late 1960s due to work and family commitments.
During the 1972/73 Christmas holidays some young members of the Raglan Swimming Club, under the guidance of Ces Gaukrodger, patrolled the popular swimming areas around Raglan’s camping ground. It was these young people and Ces, who were to answer the call over the radio for a meeting of all those interested in forming a Surf Life Saving Club at Raglan.
The call came after two members of the Piha Club in Auckland who had been transferred to Hamilton, Larry Rountree and Rodger MacIntosh, attended a couple of meetings of the Waikato Water Safety Committee, and with the guidance from the committee a public meeting was held in the Raglan Town hall on 27 June 1973.
A committee of nine was elected. This committee quickly moved into action, making contact with the Auckland Surf Life Saving Association, and also advertised for prospective members over Radio Waikato. The committee set the 7th of August 1973 as the date for the inaugural meeting of the Raglan Surf Life Guard Patrol.
The meeting was attended by 33 people including the chairman of the Auckland Surf Life Saving Club, Mr D Black, also Claude Williams and Graham Cochrane from Frankton Rotary Club.
Mr Black addressed the meeting and was quick to offer the support of the Auckland Association to which the patrol is affiliated. He also explained the financial workings of the Association and the various ways the patrol could raise funds that would be necessary to purchase rescue equipment.
The election of officers also took place that night. To acknowledge those who supported the Patrol through its first and most difficult year, listed below are the members elected that night.
Patron: Mr A.R. MacGibbon (Golden Bay Cement)
President: Mr C. Gaukrodger
Vice President: Mr L. Rountree
Secretary: Mrs E. Rickard
Asst. Secretary: Mrs J. Smith
Treasurer: Mr J. Rickard
Publicity Officer: Mr L. Rountree
Hon. Auditor: Mr W.R. West
Hon. Solicitor: Mr F.W. Course
Club Captain: Mr R. MacIntosh
Chief Instructor: Mr W. Dawie
Gear Stewards: Messrs G. White and R. Beck
Management Committee: Mrs Edwards, Messrs H. Aguirre, G. Tupp, T. White, G White and R Beck.
Initially, all equipment was stored in a shed belonging to Harstone’s on the Raglan wharf. On patrol days this equipment was then taken by tractor to the end of Riria Kereopa Memorial Drive then down the beach, past Sucker’s Point and along to Ngarunui Beach. At the end of the day the return trip had to be made back to Raglan wharf.
In 1979 after lots of voluntary hours and fundraising, a club house was officially opened at the end of Ocean Beach Road (now Riria Kereopa Memorial Drive). This made patrolling so much easier for the patrolling guards, as well as the storage of all equipment, not to mention the club members now had somewhere to stay over the weekend. Previously they had to commute each day from their own homes or if they were lucky over the summer period stay in a tent on the Raglan Camping ground. Raglan Camping generously donated one camp site each year to the life guards.
But in the late 1990’s erosion became an issue in gaining access to the beach from their club rooms and a new site was sought. With the opening of Wainui Reserve a site for the new club rooms was given at the end of Wainui Road. These new clubrooms were officially opened in 2002.
Raglan Surf Life Saving Club is a small club yet carries out a high number of rescues and preventative actions each year. In 2022 the club volunteers did 4380 hours on the beach and carried out 65 rescues and 7 first aids plus did 1831 preventative actions while patrolling.
These guards are committed to maintaining a high level of safety on Ngarunui beach and the surrounding areas.
If you wish for more details about their forthcoming Reunion and also to register, please go to their website and click on about-us/50-years or https://www.raglansurflifesaving.org.nz/about-us/50-years/.
As part of the reunion, a book is being produced covering the last 50 years and will be available to those attending.
