Colleagues full of praise for former midwife Anne on her Queen’s honour
DERBYSHIRE charity workers have congratulated their colleague after she was honoured in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
Anne Ward, who was a midwife for 36 years, has spent more than three decades volunteering for the pro-life organisation Life and received a floral gift from colleagues at its shop in Derby, where she volunteers along with husband John.
Mrs Ward, who has worked at the Derby charity shop since she retired five years ago, said: “Whatever I have done, either during my working life or as voluntary work, I have always been grateful for the people around me. We are a team trying to work together.
“My greatest support has been from my husband John and son and daughter, I thank them so much. I would encourage anyone to get involved in some way with voluntary work and to show commitment to a cause you believe in because every day volunteers do make a difference.”
Life’s director of advocacy, Liz Parsons said: “For five decades, volunteers like Anne and John Ward have enabled our charity to provide much-needed support to pregnant women and their unborn babies.
“Their love and respect for human life, and their desire to help make the lives of other people better, gives this charity its caring and compassionate ethos.
“Volunteers like Anne and John are the heart and soul of this charity and we cannot begin to thank them for their service. We are delighted that Anne Ward has been recognised at the highest level for her selfless community work. We encourage others to follow her example and join Life and other organisations which are working to make a difference to the lives of the most vulnerable in our society.”
Mrs Ward was named a medallist of the Order of the British Empire (BEM) for her services to the community in Burton. The 65-year-old spent 36 years delivering babies at Burton’s Queen’s Hospital while also juggling several voluntary jobs, both in the charitable sector and at a local school.
More recently she has volunteered at Burton’s YMCA’s winter night shelter. Mrs Ward admitted she did not believe it when she was told she had been awarded the BEM and it required a phone call with the Cabinet Office to convince her.
She said: “I had an email and I thought it was a wind-up, a scam, so I ignored it and then I had another email so I rang the Cabinet Office and they said this is absolutely true and congratulations.
“I was absolutely shocked. I was so humbled.”
The grandmother is also a regular blood donor and still volunteers at her local church, St Mary and St Modwen’s, in Burton.
The Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2020 saw 1,495 honours awarded to people across the UK.