'To receive a national award is a great honour'

A man who has spent two decades supporting D-Day veterans says receiving an MBE for his work is "humbling" and "a great honour."

Chairman of the Spirit of Normandy Trust, Richard Palusinski, is being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).

He recognised this year's D-Day 80 commemorations as potentially the final opportunity for many veterans to share their stories and arranged audiences with schoolchildren and recorded their first-hand accounts of the pivotal historical moment.

"I've been working with veterans of D-Day for over 20 years now and I consider it a great privilege to work with them," said Mr Palusinski.

"They are an amazing generation who gave of themselves and put their whole lives at risk so that we had the peace that we enjoy now."

Mr Palusinski is amongst a number of people from Wiltshire being recognised in the New Year Honours list.

Most UK honours are awarded at the new year and on the monarch's official birthday in June.

The honours list recognises people who have made significant achievements and contributions to their communities across the UK.

Mr Palusinski was awarded the MBE for his work in the year-long preparations for the D-Day 80 commemorations, for which he organised a week-long visit to Normandy for nine D-Day veterans.

Those who nominated him said his insistence on individual vehicle transport for veterans, rather than coach travel, demonstrated his concern for their welfare and security, earning him considerable praise.

Also receiving an MBE is Richard Hilling, 76, from Swindon, for his services to victims of trauma and Gulf War Syndrome.

An RAF veteran, he had 28 years of service and has dedicated his post-retirement life to improving the lives of individuals and families affected by war trauma.

"I was very surprised, but it's funny, you hear from the celebrities that they get this brown envelope and they think it's from the tax people or something," he said.

"It wasn't actually a brown envelope, it's quite obvious who it was from and I was extremely surprised."

After getting Gulf War Syndrome during the First Gulf War in 1990, he worked as a mental health nurse and was awarded the Royal Red Cross, 2nd Class, in 1994 for his efforts to combat mental health issues in the RAF.

He established the Swindon Trauma Group in 2009 to provide a support network for sufferers of psychological trauma, working to deliver support in the Swindon area and beyond.

"As a group, what we've tried to do over the years is just make people aware of the invisible injuries, post-trauma stress and post-traumatic stress disorder and refer on to other agencies," he said.

Despite his own battles with Gulf War Syndrome and Parkinson's Disease, he continues raise awareness and for psychological trauma.

Receiving a British Empire Medal (BEM) are Elizabeth and Stephen Howe, from Chippenham, for services to their community in Kington Langley.

Mrs Howe, 64, and her husband, 66, have been involved with the village's Scarecrow Festival since the year 2000, taking over management about 15 years ago.

They have donated nearly £100,000 to various causes including the Doorway organisation in Chippenham that looks after the homeless people, the Rainbow Trust, that looks after people with children in hospital, and the Fat Boys Charity, which provides Christmas gifts for children in hospital with cancer.

Mr Howe said: "It's a little cliché, but we feel honoured.

"We did say, 'Oh, what would have happened if one got it and not the other?'

"There would have been, anxiety, shall we say. So it's fabulous that we both got the honour."

The festival attracts about 4,000 visitors annually and involves the whole village and its surrounding community, with people invited to build scarecrows based on a theme, with about 50 or 60 made in total.

"It's really nice that somebody has thought to nominate us for that," Mr Howe said.

"We don't know who it was... but we'd like to say thank you to whoever nominated us, a big thank you, because it's lovely to be recognised, we don't don't run the festival for that recognition, we run the festival because we love the festival."

Other people being appointed MBEs include Lt Colonel (retired) Rory Stevenson MBE, 71, from Salisbury, for services to Spinal Injury Research, Phillip Wadey MBE, 60, from Corsham, for services to Public Rights of Way.

Elena Rossi, 58, from Swindon, is recieving a BEM, for services to the community, having provided breastfeeding support across Swindon and Wiltshire for 19 years.

Follow BBC Wiltshire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.