I did Swimming & Life Saving for my Gold Award. (I was a direct entrant) I achieved the Distinction of the Royal Life Saving Society and started teaching some cub scouts swimming. I went on to do all my coaching and teaching certificates. The first one was my life saving teachers which I took at the Gordonston School where Prince Philip attended. I was never a student there but was apart of the Outward Bound Course at Moray.and we did life saving as part of the course.
Later I was offered a job as a Red Coat/ Life Guard at Butlins and putting my Gold Award on my application made all the difference in securing a position. I then went on to teach swimming and life saving full time and again the D of E Gold helped that process of application and as I recall impressed at the interview back in 1974.
At the school where I was based, I helped with the scheme putting something back into it. Participating in the Award Scheme paved way to my career and although retired I am still coaching now. My memories were on cold freezing nights attending life saving through out the winter, ducking under booms during my sailing expedition and taking up playing the banjo. Gaining the Gold gave me confidence to achieve other accolades. The Gold was really the beginning
If any one is reading this who is not good a lessons at school - neither was I. However by doing the Award I met a lot of "ordinary" people on the journey who really inspired me and by participating in the award it gave me not just a sense of achievement but quest for life. Thank you D of E Award!