Honors have gone to a 101-year-old D-Day veteran who is ‘disappointed’ with the state of Britain today – as the names of everyday heroes who made this year’s list are revealed.
Mervyn Kersh, who was recognized for his school lectures on Holocaust remembrance and his wartime service, said it was a “wonderful thing” to receive the award.
However, the British Empire Medal holder also expressed concerns about rising anti-Semitism in the UK.
Mr Kersh, from Cockfosters, north London, explained: “What is happening now is disappointing.
“What is disappointing is the anti-Semitism that I see everywhere, that I hear everywhere or that I read.”
He admitted that his wartime service was “worth it” but added that his efforts to educate young people “don’t always work.”
The Jewish British Army veteran arrived in Normandy at the age of 19, three days after the Allied invasion of Nazi-controlled France began in June 1944, serving as a technical clerk for the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, organizing vehicle support.
He was then stationed near Bergen-Belsen when the camp was liberated by British troops in April 1945.
D-Day veteran Mervyn Kersh receives the BEM for services to the memory of the Holocaust
Mr Kersh is pictured in November last year, among the Standing with Giants silhouettes at the For Your Tomorrow installation at the British Normandy Memorial, in Ver-Sur-Mer, France.
Mr Kersh said he normally told schoolchildren during his speeches how the conflict started.
He added: “A war would not be necessary now, we have a bad attitude. »
The veteran also said he “absolutely” sees comparisons between today and the period just before World War II, adding that Russia “threatens the West.”
He continued: “The main budget should be for defence, there is nothing for anything else. That’s all there is.
“Defense must come first, second, third, fourth and fifth, because only if you are strong will you not be attacked.”
Mr. Kersh compared today’s Western leaders to Neville Chamberlain, whose attempt to appease Hitler in the 1930s failed, saying: “They think they just have to hope and make speeches.”
He added: “We either need to have another leader who is more aggressive, I don’t mean starting a war, but aggressive. We have to defend, that’s the first concern.
The other everyday heroes who will receive gongs in the New Year honors list were also revealed last night.
A BEM for charity chef Ryan Riley – ‘for services to people suffering from loss of taste’
Among them was a chef who founded a cooking school after his terminally ill mother lost the ability to taste food, recognized for her service to “people suffering from loss of taste.”
Ryan Riley, 32, was joined by a series of community champions, including a prison chess teacher and two twin first responders recognized for their remarkable work.
Weeks after losing his mother, Krista, to lung cancer in 2013, Mr Riley won £28,000 in a casino and used it to move to London and set up a cookery school, Life Kitchen.
He has gained support from celebrities including Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Nigella Lawson to create recipes for those who cannot taste due to the effects of chemotherapy.
He has now been awarded the British Empire Medal, or BEM, in a special category, in recognition of his achievements.
Mr Riley said: “Receiving an award is a wonderful thing and something I didn’t think would happen, I’m a boy from a Sunderland council estate.
“These things don’t happen to people like me, but I’m really proud and totally honored.
“My mother would be incredibly proud if she knew.”
An MBE for voluntary prison worker Carl Portman for encouraging inmates to play chess
In total, some 1,157 winners were recognized across all regions of the UK, with a particular focus this year on those who have gone above and beyond for their communities.
The oldest recipient this year was John Hearn, who, at 102, received a BEM for services to judo and the community in the North East of England.
There were two sets of twins in the list, including Ryan Appleton and Dean Appleton from Colchester – both community first responders who received BEMs for services to the community in the east of England.
Alongside them were twins Sonia Dixon and Adrienne Campbell who work together as VIP liaison officers at London Heathrow Airport and are receiving their BEM for services to the aviation industry.
Carl Portman, 61, from Banbury in Oxfordshire, was made an MBE for services to prisoners for his voluntary work in introducing chess into prisons.
He said making the list was a “surprise and delight” which could be a “stepping stone” to introducing chess further into the prison system.
Mr Portman explained that chess “improves mental health” because it teaches inmates “discipline” such as the importance of strategy and responsibility.
He said prisoners told him it saved them from suicide.
