Operation Rudolph

Portishead Rotary Club partner the Avon and Somerset Police Force bring Christmas to the British Virgin Islands

When the hurricane disasters of Irma and Maria hit the Caribbean in September 2017, Portishead Rotary Club and Officers from Portishead H.Q. and the Avon and Somerset Police Force took action.

Hurricane Irma, a category 5 hurricane, caused untold devastation during its 8 hour rampage through the British Virgin Islands destroying homes, schools, hospitals, vegetation and much more. 80% of the Islands people were made homeless and unemployed within 24 hours. Many lost everything they owed and were unable to provide food, water or shelter for themselves and their families.

Sadly 4 people lost their lives and hundreds more were injured; this number would have increased greatly had Hurricane Irma torn through the Island at night instead of during the day.

Emergency teams from around the world reacted quickly and teams of volunteers and members of the Armed forces arrived in British Virgin Islands, ready to begin emergency repairs at rapid speed so that people had some shelter and could return to their homes.

Locally Avon and Somerset Constabulary sent a team of nine officers, all of whom had volunteered to go as part of a national deployment of Police Officers to assist the Royal Virgin Island Police to keep law and order on the Islands. One of the officers sent as part of this team was PC Vicki Ephgrave who with her team, worked on Tortola the largest of the British Virgin Islands.

Whilst there, the officers also assisted with the relief effort during which they worked alongside Team Rubicon UK, an organisation which unites the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders to rapidly deploy emergency response teams to communities affected by disaster.

They are called ‘Team Rubicon’ in reference to the Rubicon River in Rome which Julius Caesar needed to cross when going into battle, hence the phrase ‘crossing the Rubicon’ which has survived with reference to any group committing itself to a risky course of action. Crossing the Rubicon marked a point of no return.

Both organisations worked around the clock, assisting with the relief effort removing debris, repairing damaged buildings and wherever possible making good severely damaged infrastructures including clearing roads so that emergency vehicles in particular could attend those in desperate need.

On returning home, like all volunteers who had experience the harsh condition, Vicki felt emotionally and physically drained, feeling the need to return to continue to help where she could. The children, in particular had left a deep feeling of sadness as they were saying that there would be no Christmas for them as they had nothing and nothing to look forward to. So, with support from Team Rubicon UK, she contacted Portishead Rotary Club to see if they could join with them and help with Operation Rudolph, a Christmas shoe box campaign. Due to the shipment dates, Vicki organised, boxed up and collected toys, gifts toiletries and sweets and from Police officers, their families and friends within 10 days which would then be shipped out to the BVI for the children.

On receiving the request from Vicki, the Club reacted without hesitation and past President Richard Bonfield went into action. Richard organised and collected £200 from the Rotary club members and their guests at a concert held a couple of days later. This money was given to Vicki in order to purchase toys and gifts for the shoebox appeal. Richard then rounded up a team of volunteers from the Club, to collect the 450 shoe boxes full of Christmas toys from Police Headquarters to store them in his house. The boxes were then packed into a hired van and driven by Club members to Team Rubicon UK’s Headquarters in Chilmark, Salisbury. The boxes then joined the 1, 550 shoe boxes that had been collected throughout the country from Police officers, Rotary club members and members of Team Rubicon UK before leaving for the British Virgin Islands to arrive in time for Christmas.

The Operation was a complete success and looking at pictures of the children in the BVI opening their shoe boxes, their faces full of joy and happiness, well, if a picture tells a thousand words the pictures say it all.

A wonderful story with a real happy ending:

Portishead Rotary Club President John Sleight MBE said ‘Just look at the pictures, no words can describe the sheer joy and excitement; we were delighted to have played a role in such a fantastic project’

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