A MAN from St John’s Chapel has been honoured for his 25 years of voluntary service for the Teesdale and Weardale Search and Mountain Rescue Team.
Scott Bisset who lives in St John’s Chapel, grew up in Westgate where he spent his childhood playing and exploring the hills, old quarries and, of course, Slitt Wood.
He said, “It wasn’t until I was in my 30s that I started to appreciate how lucky I’d been when I saw people coming to my playground for their leisure, something that I had had for free.”
It was then he decided he should ‘give something back ‘ to his own community.
“I was aware of the mountain rescue team, so I got in touch and was invited for a chat with the training officer. I knew the hills and fells of the area and had always been naturally fit, so I was invited to start training with the team,” Scott continued.
There was a minimum of 12 months’ probation where he learned new skills and enhanced those which he already had.
He recalled the first exercise he took part in:
“I was with a guy who had been in the team for five years. Wow, I thought, five years! Such a long time to give to your local community but here I am 25 years later!”
Twenty five years ago, the team met in a hut at High Force but as Scott points out – they have a come a long, long way since then. The team now has an office space and vehicle storage in the Quad station in Barnard castle, which was opened a few years ago by King Charles when he was Prince of Wales. And he came over to speak to Scott too!
The main base is a new building next to the fire station on the outskirts of Durham where the team keep two vehicles and equipment and it’s also where members train every other Wednesday.
“Although still known as the Teesdale and Weardale team, because this is where the team was formed, we provide search and rescue throughout county Durham from the high Pennines in the west to the north sea in the east – and everything in-between working with our colleagues in all the other emergency services,” explained Scott.
“The work of the Teesdale and Weardale team is extremely diverse and we occasionally have to travel out of our area to assist teams from the surrounding areas including Swaledale, Northumberland and the Lake District.”
In 2009, Scott was one of the team that aided Keswick Mountain Rescue Team during the devastating floods and searching for bodies in the western lakes after the mass shooting by Derek Bird.
During his time in the team, Scott’s love of photography and his skill with a camera led him to become the press and PR officer for the team for a couple of years. Then in 2013 came the devastating news that turned his world upside down.
He was diagnosed with cancer out of the blue and he thought his career with the mountain rescue team was over. He couldn’t have been more wrong! The team supported him through his long battle against the disease, especially through his darkest hours when hope seemed to be fading for a recovery. Amazingly – and bravely – Scott managed to do enough training to keep his place on the callout list on the team.
Throughout his battle with cancer, he remained a man with a mission – a mission to help save others. And he did! Now, at 62 years old, he is six years in remission and not only is he still a full team member, he has recently become the Welfare Officer and Deputy Team Leader.
“It’s been some journey,” mused Scott. “ And I would like to pay tribute to my team members and my wife, Claire, for their undying support.”
We are sure that those team members and Claire would agree that Scott Bisset is a remarkable man who has continued to help others, often in distress, throughout his own adversity. A brave man who never allowed his illness to interfere with his voluntary work.
Congratulations, Scott, on your 25 years service not only to your own local community but to others all around the North East and Cumbria. You thoroughly deserve the accolade – and more.
