A pensioner from Kendal has received special acclaim for nearly half a century of teaching people how to swim.
Raymond Watson, who is currently a resident at Summerhill Care Home in Kendal, was inducted into the Cumbria Swimming Hall of Fame.
This was in recognition of 48 years of loyal service as a swimming instructor with the award making Raymond, who also contributed swimming reports of achievements of Cumbrians to The Westmorland Gazette, just the second person to be welcomed into the Hall of Fame.
Read more: Swimming honour for loyal Raymond | The Westmorland Gazette
A spokesperson from HC-One Cumbria, who manages Summerhill, said: "Since retiring Raymond has continued to work behind the scenes and published his last article in 2022.
"What an honour and privilege it was to be able to share this day with him, and listen to stories from some of the people he taught - well done to Raymond and everyone else involved."
Sean Moore, the senior wellbeing co-ordinator at HC-One Cumbria, has come to know Raymond both through the care system and through their mutual swimming exploits.
He said: "Ray is well known by many of the staff, myself included - I actually worked with Raymond for a few years during my lifeguarding days.
"Some of his previous students and friends joined us last week to share the news with him and to reminisce about some of their stories."
It was through these visits that it became apparent just how many lives Raymond has touched through his long career.
"It was amazing to see how many different generations have commented saying they were either taught by Raymond or their children were taught by him - or even both," said Sean.
"I've also seen people describe how he used to clean their windows whilst working as a firefighter and how he always had time for a chat."
Raymond is a past president of the Cumbria Amateur Swimming Association and life vice-president of the Kendal Amateur Swimming Club.
Originally from Shap, he has lived in Kendal since 1959 when he joined the local fire service.
It was nine years later when he became a member of Kendal swimming club, hoping to improve his skills, though he was very quickly persuaded by club officials to start coaching youngsters - starting a lifelong passion that has made him an integral part of the community.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here