A legacy of trust
Diana Alcaraz met her husband Paul in 1960 while performing in amateur theatre. Within 6 months they were married, going on to have four children and make their home on the Isle of Wight.
Paul’s other love was the sea. Diana says: ‘His great passion was sailing. He adored it. After travelling so much on business, he loved the freedom and the challenge.’
But in 1975 Paul was diagnosed with lung cancer. During the last year of his life, as he tried to accept the constraints of his illness, he sold his beloved boat. Missing the water, he soon bought a specially adapted replacement.
Diana and Paul went to collect the boat in Poole, expecting to meet the crew who would sail with him back to Bembridge. ‘Of course there was no crew,’ Diana says. ‘He was about to cast off alone.’ A worried Diana called Mike Attrill at the destination boatyard.
‘Mike range the Coastguard, who rang the RNLI, explaining that Paul was dying of cancer and was never going to make the trip. He just wasn’t. The RNLI said: “Don’t worry. We’ll shadow him all the way. We won’t interfere unless we see there’s a real problem.” So Poole lifeboat launched, handing over at Hurst to Lymington lifeboat. And Paul nearly made it. He got as far as Ryde marina and collapsed.’
One of Mike’s team brought Paul home to Bembridge, where Diana met him. She wrote to the two crews thanking them. ‘What really hit me was that not one of those men said: “Oh for goodness’ sake, stupid idiot, blithering fool, what’s he doing? He’s mad!” They understood what he was doing and why. I just thought that was brilliant.’
At the time, Diana wanted to do more than thank the crews but her priority was to care for her family. Now, 30 years after Paul’s death, with the children grown up, she is celebrating Paul’s life and the RNLI’s good deed by making a small in memoriam donation and pledging a legacy of £10,000 in her Will.
When asked how she would like the legacy spent she is emphatic: ‘I respect and trust the RNLI implicitly. Whether it buys welly boots or flares or crew training – great! It costs about £1,200 to train one crew member for a year, so how many lives could end up being saved because of my legacy?’
