Local Heroes
Barrie’s love affair with surf life saving not over yet
The Ninety Mile Beach flanks the entire south-east border of the Gippsland South electorate, taking in the popular holiday towns of Port Albert, Seaspray, Golden Beach and Loch Sport.
The beach is popular for camping, fishing, boating and swimming, however these activities would not be as safe without the many volunteers who patrol this long stretch of coastline.
One such volunteer is Sale’s Barrie Smith, who has dedicated much of the past 44 years to the Seaspray Surf Life Saving Club.
Barrie joined the club as a 17-year-old after being approached by former president Bruce Bowman, who was trying to resurrect the then-struggling club.
He said the club originally formed in 1955 and was run mainly by RAAF personal living in Sale.
“It shut down for a few years before Bruce Bowman came to town. He really got it going again. He was the one who approached me to join the club in 1965. We were picked up down the street and asked if we wanted to join,” Barrie said.
Barrie’s main motivation for joining the club was to head down to the beach with his “togs and towel” for a swim and a good time, but he soon fell in love with surf life saving.
“We went down there and got the bronze medallion, started doing patrols and rowing surf boats and haven’t stopped since,” Barrie said.
Barrie said from the mid 1960s onwards, the club has continued to grow and despite facing some tough times, including king tides which washed away much of the sand dunes and nearly the club house in the mid 1970s and again in 2007, the club remains in a healthy position
“We get a lot of local support. The other night we officially had 129 members signed up, which is really good numbers,” he said.
He said the club is successful because of the strong friendships that exist between members.
“I have had a lot of fun down there, it is probably the people you meet and I’ve met a lot of good people,’’ Barrie said. “It doesn’t matter whether you are a doctor or a lawyer or whatever; everyone is on a first name basis… it’s a pretty diverse lot, but we all get along.”
While friendships are an important driver behind the club’s success, those friendships wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of its volunteers.
Since joining the club Barrie has held the role of club president for four years, boat captain for 21 years and district supervisor for 11 years. He also brought together the Seaspray, Woodside and Lakes Entrance Surf Life Saving Clubs, forming the Gippsland District Committee which meets regularly to organise examinations and training of members.
Barrie continues his involvement with the club and is Seaspray Surf Life Saving Club acting president and the regional officer for Gippsland which can see him stationed anywhere from Port Albert to Mallacoota, holding training sessions, accreditations or inspecting equipment.
He also gives up three to four nights a week to coach surf boat crews, as well as weekends, where he continues to carry out patrols and attends various surf life saving competitions and carnivals.
“The start of summer is really hectic, everyone has to be re-qualified and the bronze medallions get done and all the equipment inspected to make sure it is up to scratch,” he said.
“It’s a lot of work, but a few wins on the weekends makes it worthwhile. It’s good to go up to Sydney and stick it up them like we did at the World Masters Games where we won a silver and a bronze, a lot went away with nothing so it is a pretty good effort from a little club from Victoria.”
He also says the thrill of the rescue is another motivation to keep going. Over the years Barrie has saved countless lives while on patrol, but remembers one rescue above all others.
Barrie said the rescue happened by chance; it was back in the 1980s when his boat crew were out on a training run for the George Bass Marathon, which runs from Bateman’s Bay to Eden.
“We took off for a morning row from Seaspray to Woodside. We were a fair way out to sea, about 500 metres and saw three heads bobbing up and down. These guys had been fishing and got caught in a rip; they were not good swimmers and were in a bit of trouble,” he said.
“It was an absolute fluke that we had even seen them. We dragged them in and resuscitated one bloke in the boat. They were alright, but it was an absolute fluke we got to them.”
He said rescues like that make the long hours worthwhile, with awards, acknowledgments and other achievements just window dressing.
But the various awards, acknowledgments and achievements do hold a special place in Barrie’s heart, none more so than the Surf Lifesaving Australia life membership he was awarded in 1997 and the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) he received in 2009.
“The OAM was a bit of a surprise. The club nominated me. It’s a real honour to receive that and it is something that I never expected to get. The life membership also means a lot to me, I would probably put that on the same level, it definitely opens up a lot of doors,” Barrie said.
Other awards Barrie has collected include the John Wishart Memorial Medallion for the most outstanding Victorian Lifesaver in 1983-84, meritorious awards, including World Life Saving Citation of Merit and International Life Saving Federation Awards in 1990, Victorian State Centre life membership in 1989 and the Centenary Medal in 2000 for service to the life saving movement.
Barrie’s trophy cabinet holds enough awards and achievements for two life times, but the Sale mechanic doesn’t plan on hanging up his togs and cap anytime soon.
He will continue to train boat crews, inspect equipment, organise events and competitions, assess lifeguards and carry out patrols.
“Sometimes it gets tiring, but this club has given me a lot of friends and it keeps you fit.’’ he said. “I’ll keep going for a few years yet.”
