By Violet Brown
AN accolade to those veterans who have been an inspiration to others has been named the Channing Day Award.
Corporal Channing Day from Comber was fatally wounded when she was shot on October 24, 2012 while serving as an army medic in Afghanistan. Her courage, selflessness and commitment in adversity were said to embody the ethos of the combat medic.
She displayed the potential to go far within the army because of her diligence, her loyalty to friends and comrades and the high opinion in which she was held by all ranks.
Jason Gillard, a veteran of the Royal Corps of Signals, established the Northern Ireland Veterans Awards in 2022. There are 12 categories in the scheme, and with the consent of Channing Day’s family, he renamed the Inspiration of the Year category the Channing Day Award to make it more personal to Northern Ireland.
“I was hoping female veterans would be inspired to put themselves forward for an award when they saw that one of the categories was named after a well known female veteran,” he said. “She was and is an inspiration to many”.
To be eligible for the award, a candidate has to be a veteran of one of the armed services – army, navy or airforce – and has been a ‘shining star’ in the business field or within the community,
“Some veterans have gone on to inspire other veterans within the community or in business with their actions,” Mr Gillard said. “Veterans can bring a positivity post service and have contributed positively to society”.
The first Channing Day Award will be presented by her mother Rosemary at a special ceremony in the Crown Plaza, Belfast on October 23.
Mrs Day said the family were ‘very proud and pleased’ her daughter’s heroism has been remembered in this way.
“It is a nice legacy to have for her and we are delighted about it,” she continued. “It’s good to know that after nearly 12 years that she is not being forgotten about”.
