King Charles III’s first New Year Honours List includes four people in Cayman who are receiving awards, while four others, including champion swimmer Jordan Crooks, are being granted King’s Certificates and Badges of Honour.
Attorney Rosie Whittaker-Myles, former chairperson of the Commission of Standards in Public Life, is being made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her contributions to the local community.
Sue Horrocks, the director and conductor of the Cayman National Choir and founder and director of the Cayman National Orchestra has been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to the arts in the Cayman Islands.
Reina Jefferson, public relations officer, founding member and former president of the Cayman Islands Early Childhood Association is also receiving a British Empire Medal for her services to literacy and education in Cayman.
Claira Range, deputy director of Fairbanks Women’s Prison and director of Eagle House Rehabilitation Centre is being awarded the British Empire Medal for her services to the prison service and to the wider community in Cayman.
Certificates and Badges of Honour
Governor Martyn Roper also announced in the statement issued about the honours list, that he was awarding King’s Certificates and Badges of Honours to four local residents.
Certificates and Badges of Honour are awarded locally by governors in some British Overseas Territories “to those who have made outstanding contributions to our Islands”, he explained in a statement announcing the accolades.
The awardees are FINA World Championship 50-metre winner Jordan Crooks, for world-class achievement in swimming; founder of mentorship group Boyz2Men Christopher Murray, for services to at-risk youth; Edgar Bodden for public service; and Chevala Burke for services to the government and wider community.
Roper said Crooks, 20, was a “much deserved late addition to this list”, adding that the young swimmer had “warmed the hearts of our entire community with his outstanding achievement in becoming world champion in the 50m freestyle swimming”.
He added, “Jordan is an extraordinary role model for our youth. With the support of a wonderful family and his coaches, he has demonstrated remarkable dedication, persistence, skill and hard work to make history in the Cayman Islands.”
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