CHARITY champion Ann Brogan is among a number of Renfrewshire residents to be included in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.
However, the mum-of-two very nearly lost out on the chance to receive the British Empire Medal (BEM)...after a trip abroad meant she missed the deadline to accept the award.
Ann, who has been honoured for her 37-year stint as a volunteer with the British Red Cross, was in America for her daughter’s graduation when the letter from Buckingham Palace arrived at her home in Renfrew.
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She told The Gazette: “When I first read the letter when we got back, I didn’t really understand what it was about. I had to read it several times and, when it eventually sank in, I was absolutely gobsmacked.
“Then I noticed it was actually past the date to accept, so I quickly phoned them up, expecting to be told I was too late. Thankfully, everything turned out okay.”
Ann was based in Erskine when she first joined the Red Cross in 1982.
She had witnessed a neighbour’s child being hurt in a road accident and had also seen a relative collapse after suffering a cardiac arrest.
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Ann, who is mum to Linda and Derek, decided to learn first aid so she would know what to do if anything similar happened again.
She took a Red Cross first aid course and decided to volunteer, soon becoming a first aid group leader.
From there, she got involved in local fundraising and also joined the emergency response and nursing group based at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, in Paisley.
As time went by, Ann went on to train many hundreds of other first aiders.
Over the years, she has personally saved the lives of three children under the age of seven, as well as six adults.
Among those who owe their lives to Ann is her own granddaughter, who was saved from choking.
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Ann also helped to transport Kosovan refugees to Glasgow and Renfrewshire in 1999.
In addition, she manned the rest centres set up to support people affected by the floods in the Ferguslie Park area of Paisley in 1994, the Stockline plastics factory explosion in
Glasgow a decade later and the Glasgow Airport terrorist attack in 2007.
Ann, who lives in Ferry Village with her husband William, remains modest about her achievements.
She said: “I have always just thought I was part of a team.
“For people who are retired or unable to work, volunteering is a great way to make sure you don’t waste your time sitting in front of the TV all day.
“I’m just glad to be in a position to help people.
“We are fortunate in the Red Cross to be able to give support to someone going through a crisis.
“The work we do is built on kindness and I’m proud to be part of it.”
Pauline Bartley, event first aid manager for the British Red Cross in the north, is full of praise for Ann.
She said: “Her contribution to the work of the Red Cross has been outstanding.”
Ann, however, insists there are many other people she has worked alongside whose charitable efforts are equally remarkable.
She added: “I don’t deserve this award. Everything I have done for the Red Cross has been achieved with the support of others I have had the pleasure to work with.
“I couldn’t have done all this without them.”
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