Three South Ayrshire volunteers have been recognised for their service with an armed forces charity at an annual awards ceremony.

The volunteers, who each received awards for their long service to the SSAFA charity and the local armed forces community were hailed at the Voluntary Action South Ayrshire awards.

 Graham Piggott, a retired chair of SSAFA's Ayrshire branch, and treasurer Keith Tulloch both received a lifetime achievement award for more than 15 years of volunteering.

Caseworker Bob Whiteford, also received a gold award for 10-15 years of volunteering.

Bob said: “I enjoy the casework side of SSAFA, helping those who have given part of their life to look after the country, and it’s only fitting that we should give back to help them.”

Graham described his long life of volunteering with SSAFA, saying:  “I look back on 23 years working within SSAFA with a mixture of pride tempered with humility; satisfaction tempered by occasional frustration; the knowledge of the wide range of benefits we have organised on behalf of our veterans and their families; and, most importantly a sense of well-being that is a direct consequence of the opportunity and privilege of working with our excellent and highly motivated volunteers throughout Scotland.”

SSAFA's  come to the aid of over 59,000 people in 2022, including veterans, serving personnel and their families.

The charity is always looking for new volunteers to join them . 

A spokesperson added: “Military service or close experience of armed forces life is not essential, but dogged determination, a non-judgemental attitude, a sense of humour, and resilience are.”

To learn more about the armed forces charity visit ssafa.org.uk/volunteer-for-ssafa.