Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Buckie man ‘humbled’ after being commended for providing free food and drink to Dr Gray’s NHS staff

Lord-Lieutenant of Banffshire Andrew Simpson (right), with Ian McCallion and Seymour Monro, Lord-Lieutenant of Moray.
Picture by Jason Hedges.
Lord-Lieutenant of Banffshire Andrew Simpson (right), with Ian McCallion and Seymour Monro, Lord-Lieutenant of Moray. Picture by Jason Hedges.

The owner of a Moray fish van has been commended for providing free food and drink to local NHS staff during lockdown.

Ian McCallion from Buckie, who runs Fish Trawler Elgin, has been using his van to deliver supplies such as one litre bottles of milk, bottles of juice, fruit, eggs and cupcakes to Dr Gray’s Hospital staff.

He was inspired to start the initiative after being overwhelmed by seeing a distressed nurse crying on the national news about empty supermarket shelves.

The 61-year-old wanted to save workers having to go to the shops after a long shift.

Last night, he was “really humbled” to be included in the Covid Commendations set up by the Lord Lieutenants of Banffshire and Moray to recognise people for their exceptional efforts in helping others during the crisis.

“I really didn’t expect to get commended and I am chuffed about it, but it was bit overwhelming as I don’t like publicity,” Mr McCallion said.

“I enjoy helping others and it is really important especially during these extremely tough times.”

Robertson Construction and Jack Carmichael Flooring join forces to help fit and pay for a new non-slip floor and shelves in the van.

Mr McCallion even bought a new van for the venture which cost him £2,600.

He added: “The staff really appreciated the support and it worked well.

“Thanks also to the likes of Walkers, C+R Taxis, Moray Food Plus, Booker Wholesale and Elgin’s Orchard for helping to make this all happen.

“At the end of the day I wanted to make sure doctors and nurses didn’t have to go away up and queue at a supermarket after a long shift.”

This is the first time such Letters of Commendation have been awarded, and the area’s Lieutenancies say they felt compelled to publicly recognise the tremendous efforts made by many.

Almost 100 community members and groups have been applauded which includes the likes of the Moray School Bank, Moray Wellbeing Hub, Keith Covid-19 Volunteer Group, Maynes Coaches and Rockpool Café in Cullen.

Lord Lieutenant of Banffshire Andrew Simpson hailed communities and people for coming together to support each other as the pandemic continues to have a devastating impact across the whole country.

Mr Simpson said: “We have all been impressed by the way so many groups and individuals have come together to deliver support to their communities, especially to those who have been vulnerable or isolating.

“Public organisations such as the NHS, police and Moray Council have worked tirelessly on behalf of the people of Moray throughout.

“We would also like to thank the supermarkets, retailers and pharmacists who have been under great pressure from the start of the lockdown and have given exceptional service.’

While the Lord Lieutenant for Moray, Major General Seymour Monro, added: “We will almost certainly be having a second round of these Letters of Commendation in the middle of next year.

“On behalf of our communities, we give our sincere congratulations and thanks to all those who are receiving these commendations”.