SSRS – Ready to rescue

The bond between Wallenius and the Swedish Sea Rescue Society goes back a long way. Founder Olof Wallenius was very active in SSRS and to this day the commitment is strong with many co-workers within Wallenius. 

If you’re out on Swedish waters and run into problems, chances are you’ll be rescued by volunteers from the non-profit organisation the Swedish Sea Rescue Society, SSRS. For more than a hundred years SSRS has been saving lives. Today it has over 2,000 volunteers that are ready to drop everything and throw themselves on a boat at their local rescue station. Anyone over 18 can volunteer to be a sea rescuer. 

Markus Nilsson, a Game warden working with wildlife and forestry management at Menhammar stud farm outside Stockholm, is also a volunteer. “It’s happened more than once that we’ve had people over for dinner and all of a sudden I’ve had to leave. It’s fine for me: I go out on a boat and get appreciation. I see volunteering as a way to give something back to my community and a way to meet different kinds of people,” he says.

Michael Kellermann is chief security officer in the Soya Group. He has always been interested in boat life and is now on call at a station in central Stockholm. “I have learned a lot from my training and service with SSRS. I took a health care course that I now use when educating co-workers within the Soya Group. Coordinating with the fire department and ambulance teams is also a great experience that I can use in my everyday job,” says Michael.

Through the years, Wallenius has donated two large Sea Rescue boats: Signe Wallenius and Olof Wallenius, stationed at Öregrund and Falkenberg. A few years ago, the SSRS in Mälaren received the hovercraft Mats Kleberg, which can be used throughout the year (photo: SSRS).