South Shields Local History Group are pleased to welcome Tom Fennelly of the South Shields Volunteer Life Brigade as their speaker on Monday, 17th October, with his talk and display 'Always Ready for 150 Years'. Tom has been a member of the brigade for 47 years and has served as honorary secretary for 43 years.
The Brigade was formed in January 1866, adopting the South Shields motto 'Always Ready' and has upheld that tradition ever since. Tom said 'This celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Brigade has been a remarkable year and the success of the programme of events and activities has far exceeded expectations. Almost 60,000 people visited the exhibition in the museum, over 1,000 visitors attended organised visits to the Watch House with hundreds of school children visiting both the Watch House and the Museum. We are truly grateful for the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund and the interest shown by both local people and visitors.'
Tom's talk about the Volunteer Life Brigade comes at the end of these celebrations and will be held in the Dalton Suite at the Customs House next Monday. Members and visitors (charge £1) are asked to join us in the Green Room at 5pm.