CLOSE to tears Joyce Thomas came before Her Majesty the Queen. The tears would have been for her late husband John and the pride he would have felt seeing her receive an MBE at Buckingham Palace.
Tears, too, for all those who do so much and the small successes she has had as a stalwart of community life in South Herefordshire.
And tears, finally, for the deeply humbling circumstances in which her work was recognised.
But Joyce kept those tears at bay.
Personal touch
Her Majesty put her at ease with a personal touch - a salute to Joyce's long service as a governor at Ross-on-Wye's John Kyrle High School.
Joyce thanked The Queen for visiting the school earlier this year.
The Queen said it was a pleasure and pinned the MBE to Joyce's coat.
It has been over a week now since Joyce's big day, but the memory of it, she says, is forever.
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