A NUMBER of Mid Wales people have been recognised in the New Year’s Honours List.

From a Lampeter Reverend to an RNLI Operations Manager, a host of local figures have been recognised for their hard work in the annual list that recognises the work and achievements of a wide range of remarkable people across the United Kingdom from all backgrounds.

Reverend David John Goronwy Evans from Lampeter is to receive an MBE for services to charity and to the community in Lampeter.

Rev. Evans is described as a pillar of his community, who has given decades of voluntary service to charitable causes and local groups.

He is responsible for the continued success of a host of local initiatives and has raised £1.1 million for Children in Need.

A religious minister by training, he served as a Unitarian Minister at Brondeifi Chapel, Lampeter, for a remarkable 52 years prior to his retirement.

He was Chairman of the local branch of Cancer Research for over 20 years, and since 1983, he has organised and co-ordinated the local fundraising effort for Children in Need.

He has been a governor of both the primary and secondary schools for over two decades and has also been a loyal friend to the town’s elderly, visiting the residents of Hafan Deg, a residential home for the elderly, since the 1960s, as well as being an important member of the Friends of Hafan Deg Committee.

Another MBE recipient is Lynn Sloman, founder of Transport for Quality of Life, who lives near Machynlleth.

She has been recognised for services to transport and the environment.

Lynn is a nationally-recognised expert in the design and evaluation of sustainable transport investment programmes and has been one of the most influential voices in the development of cycling and walking policy over the last 20 years.

In 2002, she set up the consultancy Transport for Quality of Life specialising in sustainable travel analysis.

This has produced a large body of innovative and influential analysis, including for the Department for Transport, trade unions and non-governmental organisations.

Richard Llewelyn Griffiths, Operations Manager at Aberystwyth Lifeboat Station has been awarded a BEM for services to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution in Wales.

Having served as a RNLI volunteer for an impressive 47 years, it is his role in the last 21 years as Lifeboat Operations Manager (LOM) which has earned him the most respect.

His local knowledge has provided reassurance to casualties and crews alike when launching in difficult conditions.

His operational decision-making and station management skills are outstanding, and he is greatly valued by crew, management, volunteers and coastal personnel both past and present.

He has contributed greatly towards Aberystwyth being recognised as a ‘benchmark’ Inshore Lifeboat Station, serving as an example to the whole institution of how a station could and should be run.

Also receiving a BEM is Helen Refna Williams from Borth for services to Vulnerable Young Parents and to the Elderly in Borth during Covid-19.

Helen set up Borth Family Centre which has proved to be a valuable and important community resource, providing support for the well-being of young parents and elderly residents in Borth and the wider area during the Covid-19 crisis.

On a voluntary basis, in 2007 she established a parent and toddler group which met once a week in the village hall. She quickly became aware of the need for an advice centre to provide good parenting skills and the relief of distress within family relationships for all families.

She gradually built up the group to establish a Family Centre which was granted charity status in 2008. Having worked exceptionally hard in developing the Centre it became a three-day operation.

Whilst initially the activities were based in Borth, she also provides outreach to the surrounding area and due to her constant drive and dedication she successfully obtained People and Places lottery grant funding in 2014 and 2018.

Throughout the Covid-19 crisis she has maintained regular contact with the parents and elderly who look to her for support, prioritising those on their own or caring for a partner and those shielding.

Praising this year’s recipients, Secretary of State for Wales Simon Hart said: “In what has been an extraordinarily challenging year, it is vital that we recognise and praise the inspiring achievements of some truly remarkable people.

“These awards celebrate the people who are the mainstays of communities across Wales, selflessly giving back to those around them through their work and their personal lives.

“I’d like to extend my gratitude to each person honoured for their efforts. Congratulations to everyone receiving an honour.”