NSRI wins Centrum Guardian Project

Torsten Henschel has just been announced as the 2012 winner of the Centrum Guardian Project! Torsten was presented with the trophy and winners cheque just after lunchtime today, and at once pointed out that the rescue of Ruan Klopper from a rip was a team effort and without his team of volunteers at Station 23 Wilderness it would not have possible.You can see the video re-enactment of the rescue and one other finalist here.The R65 741 prize from Centrum will be used to fix the badly crumbling floor of the Wilderness Sea Rescue base. Lydia and Torsten Henschel with Wilderness station commander Hennie Niehaus.This is an Open letter to all our loyal Supporters from Torsten:Over the last few months the Wilderness NSRI crew, and especially I, have come to realize and truly value just how broad and deep our support base is. We want to thank you all of you from the bottom of our hearts.Every now and again one of our rescues is exposed, typically through the media. This happens less than you may think. In most instances rescuers, including ourselves, are not thanked. In contrast the rescue in Sedgefield earlier this year, which has been widely publicized and shown on SABC 3 as part of the Centrum Guardians series, has clearly shown why and how we do what we do. In this case one lucky boy, with the rest of his promising life ahead of him, was saved. And parents, family and friends did not have to experience what no parent should have to face.The documentary and the efforts, which went into our advancement in the Centrum Guardian Project, were the result of a substantial team of volunteers and ordinary people, from crew to our wonderful fund-raising and support team, from the Mayor, Councillors and their team to the local and regional media, from our fellow rescue service members ultimately to you, the community of Eden, whom we are committed to serve. Once again, thank you all from our little rescue team, based in Wilderness.Whether we win the title of Centrum Guardian or not, we have been humbled and honored by you, which is the greatest gift to us. We are part of you, we feel your support and goodwill and we will continue to do what we do best: to assist and rescue those in peril around our coastline and inland waters.Take care and enjoy our beautiful beaches this summer in safety.Torsten Henschel, and his volunteer team, NSRI Wilderness Station 23.This is the Centrum media release:Torsten Henschel, Volunteer Rescue Swimmer for NSRI Wilderness Station 23, chosen as the winner of the Centrum® Guardian Project 2012Torsten Henschel, Leadership Coach and Volunteer Rescue Swimmer for the NSRI Wilderness Station 23, has been voted as the winner of the Centrum® Guardian Project 2012. On the 15th of January 2012, Torsten responded to a potential drowning of a young boy. Due to the fierce power of the rip current, several rescue attempts had failed and Torsten knew he only had one chance to reach the boy. His focus and stamina drove him to brave the water and save the 15-year-old’s life. This is what led to him being nominated as one of the 16 semi-finalists in this year’s project.The public voted for Torsten via SMS, the Centrum® Guardian Project website, mobisite and Facebook page. Total prize money and the proceeds from SMS votes amounting to R65 741.00 was handed over to Torsten’s NRSI Wilderness Base Station. In addition, Torsten has decided to donate his personal prize money of R5 000 to the Base Station as well.Torsten and the other 15 semi-finalists were all profiled on SABC 3 in a 13-week documentary drama series called Centrum® Guardians 2012, hosted by Ruda Landman, renowned television personality and journalist. Each semi-finalist’s story was recreated and then shown in the series to demonstrate to the viewers how much bravery, tenacity, strength and agility is required by Emergency Services members to perform their daily jobs.The Centrum® Guardian Project is a social responsibility initiative that has been implemented for five consecutive years by Centrum®, the world’s number one multivitamin. It recognises and rewards the acts of courage and self-sacrifice that the people who operate in the Emergency Services industry demonstrate whenever they put their uniforms on and go to work each day.2013 nominations are now open. For more information or to nominate someone or a team that deserves recognition, please visit www.centrumguardian.com. From left to right (Front Row): Natasha MacDonald, Centrum Brand Manager; Pauli Armstrong from Enkosi; Torsten Henschel, winner of the Centrum Guardian Project 2012; Michelle Meville-Henning from Pack ‘n Stack and Sue Cartwright, Centrum Marketing Manager
From left to right (Back Row): Hennie Niehaus, Station Commander for NSRI Wilderness and Andrew Ingram, NSRI Marketing Manager.