Warrington Surf Life Saving Club members hold aloft Otago
lifeguard of the year Pru Casey. Photo by Jane Dawber.
Otago lifeguard of the year Pru Casey is as comfortable
with a pen and a clipboard as she is with rescue apparatus.
The 48-year-old Otago Boys High School science teacher has
helped rejuvenate the Warrington Surf Life Saving Club since
she joined in 2002.
The club, boosted by 24 new members joining last season and a
further 20 this season, now had 61 lifeguards - the highest
number in a decade, Ms Casey said.
"It is pleasing to see numbers so high."
Part of the appeal of the club was the large number of
opportunities it offered, with members able to take part in a
range of activities, such as sports training and first-aid
training.
The added bonus was of "joining a family", she said.
She had a ski patrol background in Wanaka, so surf
life-saving was a logical move, but she had taken on a "more
clipboard-holder role" over the years, she said.
Her efforts for the club resulted in her winning the
lifeguard of the year title at the annual Otago surf
life-saving awards.
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