27 May 2011
Joel Merrien Grunnill MBE, 1924 – 2011:
A true lifeboating legend
Life-long RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) supporter, fundraiser
and former Skegness lifeboat crew member Joel Grunnill has died
following a brief illness, aged 86.
Joel was the last of a long line of Grunnills to serve as a volunteer crew
member on the Skegness lifeboat. At the time of his retirement from the crew
in 1984 he had served 45 years, and brought to an end almost 160 years of
continuous lifeboat service by Grunnill family members.
Born in Skegness in June 1924, Joel was involved with the RNLI from a very
young age. His father, Wilf Grunnill, was a crewman on the lifeboat – and the
station’s first tractor driver when horses were replaced in the 1930s – and his
mother, Mary, was a dedicated fundraiser.
In his teenage years, Joel would accompany his father to lifeboat launches,
helping out as he grew older. Talking to the Lifeboat magazine in 2006, Joel
said, ‘The Grunnills had always been on the lifeboats, so it was natural for me
to get involved.’
At the start of the Second World War in 1939 many lifeboat stations found
themselves short-handed as lifeboatmen left for military service. This offered
Joel – then aged just 15 – the opportunity to join the Skegness lifeboat crew
and follow in his father’s, grand-father’s and great-grand-father’s footsteps.
During the war, the Anne Allen lifeboat was often called upon two or three
times a week to search for survivors of downed aircraft. One such incident
occurred in October 1941, when an Allied bomber ditched in gale force winds
and rough seas, seven miles from Skegness. An RAF rescue boat from
Boston was unable to reach the five men who had managed to escape the
aircraft into a dinghy.
Following their rescue by Joel and the crew of the Anne Allen, and a short
recovery in an RAF hospital, the rescued airmen presented the lifeboat crew
with an oar from the dinghy, inscribed with their names. The oar is still on
display in Skegness lifeboat station, seventy years later.
Joel also recalled a particularly cold rescue in early 1947 when the lifeboat
launched into a partially-frozen North Sea. Speaking in 2006, he told the
Lifeboat, ‘We were going out to a ship, and had to weave through the ice and
fend it off with boat hooks. The lifeboat couldn’t go very fast and the ship was
quite far out to sea. I’ve never been so cold!’
In 1951, Joel was appointed Second Coxswain – a position he held for 33
years until his retirement in 1984. He served on three Skegness lifeboats –
the Anne Allen, The Cuttle and Charles Fred Grantham. During his time as
crew the lifeboats launched hundreds of times and rescued 197 people.
Away from the lifeboat, Joel had a passion for motorcycling and sailing.
Following the war, Joel took to the roads on his motorcycle with his father,
spending several weeks touring Europe. He also ran a successful motor
mechanic business in the town with his cousin, April Grunnill, until their
retirement in 1989.
Joel continued his dedicated support of the RNLI in Skegness during his
retirement, first as Station Honorary Secretary (equivalent to Lifeboat
Operations Manager now) from 1992 to 1994, and as Station Chairman from
1994 until his death on Monday. He also spent many hours each week
assisting April in her role as Box Secretary, emptying and counting the
donations from some 200 RNLI collection boxes around the Skegness area,
raising tens-of-thousands of pounds for the charity each year.
On his 84th birthday in 2008, Joel was taken to sea one final time aboard the
Skegness all-weather lifeboat Lincolnshire Poacher, following the
announcement in HM The Queen’s Birthday Honours List that he would be
honoured with the award of MBE.
Coxswain of Skegness lifeboat, John Irving, said: ‘It was typical of Joel’s
modesty that he insisted his MBE was presented to him in Skegness, saying it
was recognition of the entire station, not just himself.’
He added: ‘Joel was a true friend, not only to myself but to everyone at
Skegness lifeboat station and his service record will never be equalled. He
had a smile for everyone and always made new recruits – myself included, a
long time ago – feel very welcome. He will be greatly missed by us all.’
Messages of condolence following Joel’s death have been received from
around the country.
Paul Boissier, Chief Executive of the RNLI said: ‘I have only had the privilege
of meeting Joel Grunnill on one occasion, during a recent visit to Skegness,
but I found him to be one of the most impressive and dedicated lifeboatmen
that I have ever met.
‘Coming from a long line of Skegness lifeboatmen, and having supported the
Skegness lifeboat himself for over 80 years, there was nothing that Joel didn't
know about the waters on the Lincolnshire coast, and he was held in the
highest respect at the station.
‘Joel was the true embodiment of the great British tradition of lifeboating: men
and women who selflessly give up their time to go out in small boats to rescue
strangers in distress upon the sea. There will be many people in Skegness, in
the wider RNLI community, and around the UK who will be saddened by the
passing of such an accomplished but modest man.’
In line with his modesty during his life, Joel’s wishes were for a small and
private funeral, and for his ashes to be scattered at sea by the Skegness
lifeboat. Donations in his memory can be made to the RNLI, via Parker's
Funeral Directors of Wainfleet.
Photos
1. Joel Grunnill in 1984 following his retirement from Skegness lifeboat
crew after 45 years service. (Credit RNLI/Skegness)
2. Joel Grunnill (L) c.1927, aged 3, pictured with his sister, Ruth, with
RNLI collecting boxes. (Credit RNLI/Skegness)
3. The Anne Allen lifeboat making way through a partially-frozen North
Sea in early 1947. (Credit RNLI/Skegness)
4. Joel Grunnill MBE, December 2008, pictured with Lord Lieutenant of
Lincolnshire following his MBE presentation at Skegness lifeboat
station. (Credit RNLI/Skegness)
5. Joel Grunnill MBE, December 2008, pictured with his cousin and
Skegness lifeboat Box Secretary, April Grunnill, following his MBE
presentation. (Credit RNLI/Skegness)
RNLI media contacts
For more information contact Russell Matthews, Lifeboat Press Officer
(Volunteer) on 07930 449602, or Alison Levett, RNLI Media Relations
Manager, North, on 07786 668912
RNLI Skegness online
For further information about the RNLI in Skegness visit Twitter, Facebook
and YouTube.
RNLI online
For more information on the RNLI please visit www.rnli.org.uk. News releases
and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and
video, are available at the RNLI Press Centre www.rnli.org.uk/press
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search
and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland
coasts. The RNLI operates over 230 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland
and has more than 150 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK. The RNLI
is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary
donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was
founded in 1824 its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 137,000
lives. The RNLI is a charity registered in England, Scotland and the Republic
of Ireland.