‘This is our spiritual home’: Hundreds of Lifesavers Gather to Remember Attack The fallen.
Gazing quietly upon the surf on Bondi shoreline, side by side with nearly 1,000 colleagues, Lockie Cook opened up to the grief of a community’s most traumatic week in living memory.
“It feels like my defences are coming down,” he stated.
Volunteer lifeguards gathered in their hundreds on the weekend to participate in two minutes’ silence and remember those killed in the tragic shooting.
From the very young to the elderly, alongside friends and neighbours clad in red-and-yellow uniforms embraced one another, creating a chain running from the iconic bay's northern edge to its south end.
“The most important aspect to emerge from this tragedy is just the depth to which this community means to me,” he shared.
“This is our church … It’s just important we come together again and begin to mend.”
A Moment of Shared Sorrow
At that morning, the two minutes’ silence was called for by a figure at the beach’s primary observation point, behind which had been laid rows of tributes.
“Two minutes can be a a lengthy period but I urge you to reflect,” he advised.
“Join hands with the soul next to you, shut your eyes and remember the those who are suffering so we can rebuild with strength for this beach family.”
Volunteers stared at their feet or to the distance as the community and its leaders watched on. The sole audible things were the lapping of the sea, a single barking dog and a overhead rescue helicopter, which circled along the beachfront as the moment concluded.
Taking Back the Shore
Loved ones and colleagues slowly came together in an embrace and applaud their fellow lifesavers at the far end of the beach as acclamation erupted from the watching crowd.
This was another example of the rescuers working to strengthen the area this week, noted one man, a local of the northern surf club and a emergency helper on that fateful day.
“At this moment, I am filled with the compassion and solidarity,” said the individual, who requested privacy.
Having made his home in Bondi for most of his years, he joined the swim on the following day and has sought to take back the beach as his own.
“The experience was asserting a presence, it’s cathartic,” he added.
The Ethos of Lifesaving
Gene Ross, a veteran instructor, spent the period of reflection standing by his just-trained son, considering the togetherness his club had exhibited every day since Sunday.
“Choosing to do the tragedy here … led Australia to come and support the individuals affected.”
Scores of volunteers laughed and cried together as they returned toward their clubs and through the green space where their fellow members saved lives on Sunday.
Many others remained on the beach, prepared to assist people returning to the surf.
“We’re here for everybody and that’s the ethos of lifesaving,” Ross stated.
“It is our calling as rescuers: we move toward the crisis.”