Admiral Lord West of Spithead GCB presented Merchant Navy Medals to ten recipients at Trinity House in London on Monday 26th November.
Amongst those awarded the medal was Towcester resident Captain L A Holder, Chairman of Videotel Marine International Ltd for services to the Nautical Institute and marine safety training.
Len Holder is a founder member of the Nautical Institute, which is the professional body for Master Mariners and Deck Officers. He was President of the Institute from 1993 to 1996.
Since they came to live in Towcester more than ten years ago Ann and Len Holder have supported Towcester Choral Society and the Towcester and District Branch of Lions International.
They have also sold nearly 1000 copies of two books of anecdotes A Lighthearted Look at Seafaring and other stories and More of Lens Stories.
Profits from the home-sales have allowed £4,120 to be donated to seafarers charities and £1,450 to the National Association for Colitis and Crohns Disease. The last-named has helped to fund a local support group for Crohns sufferers.
Background about the Merchant Navy Medal.
The Merchant Navy Medal recognises meritorious service and acts of courage afloat, and was inaugurated during the Trafalgar Bicentennial year of 2005.
The medal features a profile head of Admiral Lord Nelson on the obverse with the inscription "The Merchant Navy Medal" at the top and "1805 Trafalgar 2005" at the bottom. Lord Nelson appears as a reminder of the time he spent as a young man on a West Indies merchantman and the formative part the Merchant Navy played in the development of his outstanding seamanship skills.
On the reverse of the medal is the Merchant Navy logo, with the inscription "for meritorious service". The ribbon is primarily green and red, with a narrow vertical white stripe dividing the two colours, depicting the oncoming navigation lights of a seagoing vessel underway.
