The Lord of Mann, His Majesty King Charles III, has recognised five Isle of Man residents in his 2024 New Year’s Honours List.
Among those given the royal seal of approval for their achievements and service to society is Dr John Keith Daniels.
A former island GP, Dr Daniels has been made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) for his outstanding services to primary care.
Dr Daniels worked as a full-time GP principal at Palatine Group Practice from 1990 to the end of August 2022. He was the Isle of Man’s first GP postgraduate tutor who formalised and organised teaching for island GPs.
Since 2016, he has supervised foundation year junior doctors during their GP rotation and encouraged countless individuals to pursue a career in GP practice.
Guy Thompson has also been made an MBE for his ‘outstanding services to the Scouts Association Isle of Man’.
Mr Thompson has been involved in the scouting movement for nearly 20 years and was appointed as Island Commissioner ten years ago. He has worked to secure funding and grants for equipment and training, with kayaking, archery, grass sledging and bush craft being some of the examples.
In 2021, he turned one of his lifetime ambitions into a reality when he started offering the scouting experience to children with complex needs.
With the cooperation of the island’s Educational Special Needs Units, there are now four ‘rainbow’ scout groups in the island’s schools, which allows these children to participate in mainstream activities.
Also on the 2024 New Year’s Honours List is Reginald Derek (Derry) Kissack who has received the British Empire Medal (BEM) for his outstanding contribution to charitable, cultural and community work in the island.
Perhaps best known for forming the comedic motorcycle group ‘The Purple Helmets’ in 1990, Mr Kissack organised annual shows with the group at Onchan Stadium, raising £124,000 for the Southern Motorcycle Club, which enabled the club to buy 112 acres of land at Cairnagrie and build a clubhouse with rider and family facilities.
Over the years, he has raised funds in support of local charities such as Breakthrough Breast Cancer, RNLI, Hospice Isle of Man and Cystic Fibrosis Isle of Man.
Renowned campaigner Diana Parkes, the co-founder of the Joanna Simpson Foundation, also makes the list and is made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in recognition of her campaign work.
The foundation was set-up in 2014 following the brutal killing of Diana’s daughter Joanna Simpson who lost her life at the hands of estranged husband Robert Brown in 2010 - just one week before the finalisation of their divorce.
Diana was honoured for her tireless work in helping vulnerable children who had suffered the effects of domestic abuse and domestic homicide.
The King has also made James Michael ‘Mike’ Keggen, a long-standing member of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI), an MBE.
During 50 years of unbroken service, Mr Keggen has undertaken a wide range of roles at Port St Mary Lifeboat Station, including crew, mechanic, helm and coxswain, a position he has held since 2019.
In addition to His Majesty the King’s honours, the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man, Sir John Lorimer, has also bestowed a commendation of his own to Mrs Elizabeth Bankes-Jones.
Mrs Bankes-Jones is a primary school teacher and psychotherapist who has helped numerous children with special needs and their families.
In 2005, following a project to find pen pals for her pupils in Africa, she set up a charity called ‘S4U’ to raise money and buy land to build a senior school in Uganda called the ‘Good Hope School’.
His Excellency will present the award to Mrs Bankes-Jones in the New Year.