
The Duke of Kent has been presented with The Institution’s Thanks on Vellum certificate to mark 50 years as President of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) as thanks for his dedication to the charity.
Stuart Popham, RNLI Chair, and Mark Dowie, RNLI Chief Executive, were at St James’s Palace on Tuesday, 10 December to present the Duke with the honour.
Dowie commented on His Royal Highness’s work wit RNLI, “His Royal Highness has shown unwavering support for the RNLI in the past 50 years. He has visited almost all of the RNLI lifeboat stations around the coasts of the UK and Republic of Ireland and has attended many RNLI events, thanking thousands of crew members, fundraisers, supporters and staff. It was a great honour to present The Duke with the certificate and we remain very grateful for his support and dedication to our lifesaving charity.”

The Duke regularly visits lifeboat stations to show his support for their round the clock search and rescue work.
Prince Edward, Duke of Kent took over the role from his mother, Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent in 1969.
The RNLI “volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates over 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations,” according to their press release.