Ready to answer THE CALL OF DUTY

Christmas Day can be a whirlwind for RNLI volunteer Andrew Bengey, 58, but he’s happy

When he sits down to his Christmas dinner each 25 December, Andrew Bengey, who’s 58, knows full well there’s a chance he’ll be called away from his steaming plate of turkey and stuffing at just a moment’s notice.

Such is the life of a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) volunteer, but it’s something Andrew wouldn’t swap for the world.

‘I’ve been called away from birthday parties, meals with friends, but it’s just part of the job, and something you learn to live with,’ he says.

Andrew, who grew up in Ilfracombe on the north Devon coast, spent most of his childhood fishing, sailing and swimming in the sea, so signing up for the RNLI in November 1978, at the tender age of 17, was a no-brainer.

‘I was comfortable in boats, and knew my way around the water. It seemed like a way I could help people, and really give back to the community,’ Andrew says.

Each year, he was on call for the RNLI over the Christmas period. But, while he often attended to a number of incidents in December, Christmas Day itself was always quiet.

‘That was until 2014,’ says Andrew. ‘I’d spent the morning opening presents with the family – my wife, Dawn, then 47, our daughters, Gemma, then 26, Amy, 23, and our son, Ben, 18. Then we’d taken mine and Dawn’s parents out for a lovely Christmas lunch at a restaurant just out of town.’

Arriving back home at around 3.30 pm, Andrew and Dawn decided to take the dog out for a walk, leaving the kids in front of Christmas specials on telly.