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Two British nationals living in Spain have been recognised in the United Kingdom’s New Year Honours List 2023, as reported by the British Embassy in Madrid.

 

The first Brit to be honoured is Michele Masson, President of the charity organisation Help Vega Baja, who has been awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to British Nationals in Spain in the New Year Honours List, which was published on Saturday December 31, 2022.

 

As noted by the British Embassy, there are more than 2,000 British Nationals living in the area covered by Help Vega Baja and for many of them the charity has been a lifeline in difficulty times.

 

Since becoming the organisation’s President in 2015, Michele Masson has steered the charity through the twin challenges of Brexit and Covid-19, as well as the severe flooding that hit the Vega in September 2019 – providing a source of constant support to the community when they needed it most. More recently, she has corralled the charity’s volunteers to gather supplies of food and clothes for the local Ukrainian association to distribute to the high volume of refugees arriving in Torrevieja.

 

British Ambassador to Spain Hugh Elliott said, “I know that my colleagues in our Alicante consulate find it hard to imagine the south of the province without Help Vega Baja and, indeed, without Michele. Under her leadership, the charity has become one of our key partners in the region – assisting with complex consular cases and acting as our eyes and ears on the ground. During the pandemic, Michele worked with us on a partnership pilot project to distribute consular funding via food vouchers to vulnerable families whose income had been lost due to COVID restrictions. Michele is a wonderful example of leading by doing and I am delighted that she has been honoured for her work.”

 

Michele herself said, “I am honoured to be awarded the British Empire Medal for services to British Nationals in Spain by his Majesty, King Charles III. The charity world has many challenges, but knowing at the end of each day we have made a difference makes everything we are faced with worthwhile. I extend my appreciation to colleagues, friends and family who support me. Thank you all.”

 

The other UK national named in the New Year Honours List is Beverley Olwyn Corbett, who receives an MBE for her work as a trustee and volunteer at Noah’s Ark in Tenerife.

 

“It’s always great to see Brits in Spain rewarded for the contribution they make to their communities,” added Embassy representatives, “thank you for all that you do.”

 

Images: British Embassy Madrid