WMA Lecturer Bill Findlay Awarded Prestigious Merchant Navy Medal
Bill Findlay has been awarded the prestigious Merchant Navy Medal and was honoured at a presentation ceremony at Trinity House in London on Monday 30 November, where the medal was presented by the medal’s patron, Admiral Lord West of Spithead.
Bill has been awarded the medal for his significant contribution to Maritime Education and Training, and to the Guild of Benevolence of the Institute of Maritime Engineering Science and Technology.
Bill had a distinguished career at sea before spending 37 years working in maritime education and training. He has been, at different times, the Head of Marine Engineering at Plymouth School of Maritime Studies, the Head of Department of Marine Engineering and Shipbuilding at Highbury College of Technology, Portsmouth, the Head of Department of Marine Engineering, Warsash College of Maritime Studies and the Head of Maritime Division at Southampton Institute of Higher Education.
He has also been recognised for his work with as a trustee of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology’s Guild of Benevolence. In this role he has made regular case visits to support merchant navy personnel and their families in their applications to the Guild of Benevolence.
The medal is round and has upon its obverse a profile portrait of Admiral Lord Nelson with the inscription THE MERCHANT NAVY MEDAL around the top and 1805 TRAFALGAR 2005 around the bottom. The reverse face features the Merchant Navy logo and the inscription reads FOR MERITORIOUS SERVICE.
Merchant Navy Medal awarded for exceptional service
On 30th November 2009 Admiral Lord West of Spithead presented the Merchant Navy Medal to ten merchant seafarers and five honoris causa recipients at formal ceremony held at Trinity House, Tower Hill in London.
This year’s recipients come from across the UK and have been recognized for their exceptional service and acts of courage afloat.
Captain Matthew Easton, Chairman of the Merchant Navy Medal said: “The Merchant Navy Medal, was established in 2005 as part of the bicentennial Trafalgar celebrations, and in just five years has achieved solid industry recognition and endorsement.
“The medal offers an invaluable and prestigious means of recognizing seafarers of exceptional merit, while highlighting the importance and value of the maritime industry.
“Each year the judges have to select the recipients from an outstanding selection of high calibre nominees. These people are very special, acting as a source of inspiration for those working in the Merchant Navy and a beacon for those considering a career in the sector.”
Friends and family of the medal recipients attended the presentation ceremony, together with representatives from across the Merchant Navy.
Those attending included; Robin Knox-Johnson an ex-merchant seafarer himself, Michael Grey former editor of Lloyd’s List and 2008 medal recipient, Edmund Brookes Deputy Director General of the Chamber of Shipping and Nigel Palmer Chairman of the Merchant Navy Training Board.