Marcy plays "vital role" at Richmond search and rescue

She may not be rushing, lights flashing to Steveston Harbour before ripping out into the open sea in a rescue vessel to save a stricken boat and its passengers.

But that doesn’t make Marcy Babins’ role at RCMSAR’s Station 10 in Richmond any less vital than one of the heroic volunteers who risk their life to save others.

Babins, you see, is one of the few behind the scenes that makes the volunteer-run search and rescue service tick, as the station’s bookkeeper and treasurer.

She has just been lauded at the station for marking 10 years of service, after joining to continue the great work of her late father-in-law, Len Babins, who passed away in 2007, with 22 years’ SAR service in his back pocket.

According to Station 10 – aka the Fraser Marine Rescue Society - Marcy has been “crucial to the stations survival,” as they are dependent on her annual application for gaming grants, reportedly “an arduous process.” 

“I got involved because of (Len). I had the skills to help the organization, so it was a good fit,” Marcy told the Richmond News, adding that her addition to SAR was about four years after her father-in-law’s passing.

“My father-in-law was always giving back to the community and he set the standard.

“I think maybe, on some level, he’s looking down and realizing someone in the family is following his legacy.”

Despite being there for more than a decade, Marcy said she’s still learning what the station does, given how technical – and vital – its role is when the Coast Guard needs an assist or is otherwise deployed.

“The volunteers at the station put in hundreds of hours and their volunteering is so vital,” added Marcy.

“If they want reimbursed for expenses, they know where to come and they’re in no doubt what they need to give to me.

“They don’t get the recognition they deserve. They’re considered an essential service by Revenue Canada, but we don’t have helicopters on the mountains, so it’s important for us to attend every single community festival, let people on the boat and show them that one wetsuit costs $1,000.

“We may be a volunteer-run service, but the equipment needs to be top class, as the conditions out there can be very dangerous, there are no shortcuts.”

Like so many volunteer-run organizations, the pandemic has put a major spanner in the works in terms of exposure and ability to raise funds.

“The best PR we have had is when we’re at a festival and we’re tasked to a job and people can see how fast we turn it around and get out there,” explained Marcy.

“We’re not getting any of that kind of exposure right now. We are one of those things that you don’t know much about it until you need it. And it needs to come quickly when you need it; time is vital out there.”

For more information about Station 10 or to donate, go to http://www.rcmsar10.org/donate.