The RNLI was my pandemic SAVIOUR!

Classed as vulnerable and told to shut herself away from the world, Vicki Owens initially felt scared as the first lockdown hit

- KARA O’NEILL

Like many of us, Vicki Owens, 49, still remembers exactly how she felt when Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the country was going into lockdown, amid a terrifying coronavirus pandemic in March 2020.

‘It was really scary,’ Vicki, who lives in Holyhead, on Anglesey, Wales, says. ‘I have psoriatic arthritis, and the medication I take to manage my condition represses my immune system, putting me straight into the “vulnerable” category.

‘I always knew my chronic health condition came with a few disadvantages but being more susceptible to a killer virus during a worldwide pandemic wasn’t something I ever thought I’d need to consider,’ Vicki says. ‘A phone call with my Rheumatology department and the dreaded letter from the Welsh Government confirmed I needed to shield – and with that, completely change my way of life.’

But Vicki, a hotel receptionist, had a plan. Keep busy and carry on – and the key to that was her position with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).

Back in August 2016, Vicki had taken on the volunteer role of Lifeboat Press Officer (LPO), which she balanced alongside her full-time job. But with the hospitality industry forced to close its doors, and Vicki being compelled to ‘stay home, working for the RNLI was about to become her entire focus.