Former Keith teacher: ‘Royal honour makes me feel closer to dearly missed granddad who taught me piano and took me to the pictures’
Mary McGregor has received a BEM for her services to the church and Girlguiding.
A former Keith teacher says decades of volunteering in the community have helped her find a place to “belong”.
Mary McGregor’s “relentless” volunteering has involved her playing an integral part in youth organisations, church work and local charities.
Now, she has received a British Empire Medal (BEM) in recognition of her services to Girlguiding and the Church of Scotland Guild.
For Mary, the award is extra special as her late grandfather also received a BEM for his voluntary service many years ago.
“It means a lot to me that I’m getting the same award as my grandad,” she said.
“He had three granddaughters, and I’m the only one who knew he had one.”
Mary shared a special bond with her grandfather Osbert Wilson Lawrence, who lived in Aberdeen.
“He took me for walks down to Duthie Park and to the pictures,” she said.
“He used to stand over me while I was practising my piano playing.
“And he always had a new tune he wanted me to learn.”
She credits him for encouraging her to focus on her education and to carry that work ethic throughout her life.
“I was brought up with the attitude that if you’re asked to do something, and you know you can do it, and the only thing it’s going to cost you is time, then you can always make time,” she said.
Mary McGregor receives BEM
Mary is modest about receiving the BEM but it is clear her service to the community has benefited many people over the years.
“If you’re asked to do something,” she says… “You never say no.”
Mary dedicated her career to teaching and most of her time outside the classroom to the Moray community.
For 12 years, she delivered meals to older residents for Meals on Wheels, providing a vital lifeline for many people in the area.
“You weren’t just delivering a meal,” she says. “You were checking on people.
“If something didn’t seem right, you noticed.”
Mary has also supported generations of young people in the area through Girlguiding.
What started as volunteering with her daughter’s Brownies group turned into a lifelong commitment of leadership and commissioner roles.
Decades of service
Mary recently received a long service certificate to mark her 30 years of dedicated service to the Church.
She previously served as convenor of the Moray East Presbyterial Council and represented the region through the Church of Scotland Guild Theme Team.
“It helped me get to know people,” she said. “It helped me belong.”
After she retired from teaching, she started volunteering at the Kirk Shop in Keith and was named Keith’s Community Champion for planning the Blythswood Care Shoebox Appeal.
Mary has filled hundreds of boxes for vulnerable families and this year has given herself the challenge to fill 87 more – to represent her late husband’s age.
[Source: Press and Journal]
