Dr Lexi Obee-Kendall (40) recently passed out as the first woman to become Mudeford RNLI’s lifeboat tractor driver. In honour of International Women’s Day, she is sharing her experience to inspire other women to get involved.
After moving to Mudeford in 2018, GP and single parent to two young daughters, Lexi, wanted to get involved with her local community and meet new people. So, at the start of 2019, she joined Mudeford RNLI as their new Lifeboat Medical Advisor.
She said: "My colleague, a doctor who had been the Lifeboat Medical Advisor at Mudeford for years, was taking retirement and asked if I’d be interested in the position. So I went to the station, spent time with the crew and saw the shore crew driving this massive tractor that launches the lifeboat. At that point there were no women in the shore crew and only one female lifeboat crew member and I thought: ‘Do you know what? I want to be the first female tractor driver at Mudeford. I want to do that!"
Despite having no tractor driving or boating experience, Lexi promptly started the vigorous training and assessment process. Although there were many hurdles along the way, with the support and encouragement of her Mudeford RNLI family, Lexi passed out as a tractor driver in November 2024.
Lexi is passionate about inspiring women to fulfil their ambitions and when talking about women in search and rescue, Lexi said: "It’s so important to celebrate women in search and rescue and encourage more women into the RNLI. I’m sharing my experience because visibility is key. If you see other women in search and rescue, you’re more likely to get involved. It’s a bit like when I started medical school; there were far fewer female surgeons than there are now, and it probably did influence what career paths we chose. I strongly believe that if you can see women doing what you want to do, you’re more likely to think: ‘I can do that too."
Balancing life as a mum, doctor, and a trained RNLI lifeboat tractor driver, Lexi enjoys the challenge of doing something completely different from her day-to-day roles.
Lexi said: "The RNLI has given my kids and me an incredible group of friends. When we moved here, we didn’t know anyone, and now, thanks to the RNLI, we’re surrounded by a wonderful community of people who feel like family. As a coastal GP, it’s really important to me that people are safe in the water. The other massive thing for me is that I want to show my girls that they can be whatever they want to be."
From kit and equipment to training and support, the RNLI is committed to helping shape the future for women in maritime.
Supported by thousands of women in fundraising, water safety, engineering and staff teams, 15% of RNLI operational crew are women.
Talking about why it’s important to encourage more women to join the RNLI, Lexi said: "Teams work well when they’re diverse. Everyone has something different to bring and so if we’re all the same, the team doesn’t work. Our team at Mudeford is an example of a team that works well because we’re all different, and that’s something to be celebrated."
Ahead of International Women’s Day this year, the RNLI hosted their second ever Women in SAR Training Week, an action-packed five-day event that aimed to bring together women from across the UK and Ireland to inspire, connect and share their experiences while learning new skills.
To find out more about volunteering at the RNLI, including current vacancies, please visit: rnli.org/support-us/volunteer
Photo Credit: RNLI/Harrison Bates
