‘Remarkable Wick mum honoured with MBE

Mandy Paine, of Selwyn Avenue, has been made an MBE for her selfless campaign to raise awareness of terminal illnesses and to help families and doctors cope with loved ones facing death.

For the past decade Mandy has been valiantly battling against chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) – a condition which affects her ability to breathe to such an extent that she now needs to use oxygen tanks 24 hours a day to survive.

But that hasn’t held the charitable Wick mum back from her charity work. She has been an avid supporter and people’s champion of both Dying Matters and the National Council for Palliative Care (NCPC) for almost 10 years.

Mother-of-two Mandy said: “I was flabbergasted when I heard the news. I just couldn’t believe it.

“But I was very humbled, too, because this isn’t just an MBE for me, it’s for all those who have helped me during my campaign, too. Without them, I would never have achieved this.”

Mandy, who recently finished an eight-week course of chemotherapy treatment, said that receiving the MBE had motivated her to continue her work with the NCPC and Dying Matters.

She is a member of NCPC’s People in Partnership steering group and Chronic Respiratory Diseases Group, and played a key role in the development of the Difficult Conversations booklet on COPD for doctors and patients facing end-of-life care.

Mandy regularly speaks at medical conferences up and down the country, as part of her role as a Dying Matters champion.

She also set up the Challenge 50 appeal, in a bid to raise £50,000 for the charity, which has seen her record a song with her son Daniel, that tugged on the heartstrings of operatic star Myleene Klass.