It’s a festive morning when the Flame visits the Silver Salties at Thirroul Surf Club. Two of its members – Hagen Kreusser and Allan Hutton – are turning 70 and there’s home-made black forest cake to celebrate.
There are also two giant cards, large-as-life portraits sketched by Col Bruton, 89, for the occasion.
Col – a former marathon surf ski paddler – is one of eight Life Members who have been drawn back into Thirroul Surf Club thanks to the Silver Salties.
The group is part of a nationwide Surf Life Saving program that promotes fun, fitness and friendship for people over 65. Co-ordinator Ian Sakoff – a former club captain at Thirroul SLSC – is not yet retired himself, but was inspired to start the social group after he volunteered with Meals on Wheels.
Delivering food in the local area made him realise how many elderly people were alone and lonely at home. One particular encounter sticks in his mind: “The lady who said, yes, my son's coming to visit me – not this Friday, the Friday after, for one and a half hours. It's just sad.”
At the same time, older surf lifesavers, like Allan Hutton, wanted to get involved with the club again. “Al and I just said, let's just start this off, doesn't really matter if we just go down there for a swim and a coffee and there's only me and you. That's okay.”
Thirroul's Silver Salties first met in January 2021. Now there are 30 people on the books, with 20 turning up every Thursday. It's the only club of its kind in the northern suburbs.
“They're loving it,” Ian says. “So yes, I think it's changed them. It's changed a lot for sure. You can do a lot of work for a club, you can be a Life Member, but you can lose contact and then that’s in your past.
“There's a whole lot of older members that got re-involved with the club. Even last year at our carnival, they helped out with the barbecue and they helped out presenting trophies. They just thought that was fantastic.”
Held from 9-11am every Thursday, the group has not only brought old members back into the surf club, it’s attracted new ones. Any local retirees are welcome to come along; no surf lifesaving connection required.
“I would really like it to be offered to everyone,” Ian says.
Thirroul's Salties like to keep things simple – nothing fancy like yoga as some clubs do.
“It is what it is,” Ian says. “It’s just go down the beach and have a chat, have a coffee.”
Each week, the group splits in two. The more mobile go on a walk (along the sand to Austinmer, for example), while the rest stroll along the promenade or sit on the surf club's front veranda, read the papers and enjoy the view (today, there are dolphins).
The Silver Salties group does have four women but most are men, ranging in age from 60s to 90s.
They have their own newsletter, The Silver Salties Sentinel, written and printed by Col Bruton.
The current Sentinel is headlined 'Thirroul’s Venetian Twins' in honour of Hagen and Allan. It is an entertaining outlet for nine decades of memories of local life. Readers of the Flame's monthly magazine can look forward to seeing some of these over coming months.
“Col Bruton – all that info and history that he’s got, it’s getting used,” Ian says. “It’s really fantastic for Col.
“I hope I'm like that when I’m that age. There's a few there, all in their late 80s, and they're going really well. And that's the secret … keep going.”
Need to know
Join the Silver Salties program at Thirroul SLSC and be part of the surf lifesaving community!
What's On: Walk, talk and optional swim
When: Thursdays, 9-11am
Cost: Free. Come when you can!
Meeting point: Meet on the front verandah at the Thirroul SLSC Clubhouse, The Esplanade, Thirroul. Program leaders Ian Sakoff and Allan Hutton lead the sessions.
More info: Contact Ian Sakoff via email or phone 0422 216 594.
Share: Click here to download a PDF of the Silver Salties flyer to share
