Candidates offered an ocean rescue ride-along

When the town offered to take the five Board of Aldermen candidates on a ride-along to witness Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue (WBOR) in action, only two partook.
Candidates James Smith and Susan Howell Collins rode up and down the beach strand with WBOR director Dave Baker in an agency vehicle at separate times on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 5, offering them a unique insight into the inner-workings of an important town agency.
Following their experience, both candidates expressed a deep joy in the gallant bravery and capabilities of WBOR personnel and said the ride was an opportunity to open avenues of communication that could serve both the government and the agency well in the future.
“I have always been impressed with the life safety team, but now I am overly impressed with them,” Smith said. “I spend a lot of time on the beach and it’s very heartwarming to see the dedication out there.”
“(Baker) introduced me to a lot of the lifeguards at the stands,” Smith continued, “and I think if the lifeguards see an elected official out there that really cares about their day-to-day operations and is there for support...I think that is just one more factor in keeping moral high and showing them that we support them.”
Collins had similar afterthoughts.
“By riding with him (Baker) I could see that they (WBOR) have a service to do and that they do it—and their record proves it,” Collins said. “They don’t do what’s required, they do above that standard.”
Both candidates also saw the ride-along as an educational tool, offering them the chance to see lifeguards in action.
Smith said he saw the lifeguards work their skill-set when a person was caught in a rip current.
Collins said she was impressed by how effective the agency’s personnel was in finding missing children and specifically noted the story of a young girl who was lost Saturday:
A little girl approached and told lifeguards that she couldn’t find her parents, Collins said. The lifeguards asked the girl what her mother’s name was.
The girl said her mother’s name was: “mom.”
The lifeguards asked the girl for her father’s name.
She replied: “Dad.”
“So they were looking for a mom and a dad with a little girl in a pink bathing suit,” Collins said, giggling.
She said WBOR found the girl’s parents within minutes.
While both the candidates saw some action, Labor Day weekend was a poor reflection on how busy the WBOR has been this season. The bad weather kept most of the beach-goers at home.
Smith said he would like to make the ride-along a monthly event—a significant gesture to a town agency that keeps Wrightsville’s beaches safe.
“I’d love to do it once a month, make sure they’re getting all the support they need,” Smith said. “If there are things that they need, we can hear it firsthand and see it firsthand.”
Baker commented on how the candidates benefited from the ride-along the next day, saying: “It was very enlightening for them and very educational.”
He said it gave each of them a behind-the-scenes look at the overall workings of WBOR.
“It gave them an understanding that they didn’t have before,” Baker said.

—Brian Freskos