New Year Honours for Hospitality Action's Dick Turpin and Francis Brady of La Mon Hotel & Country Club
Semi-retired Turpin, who has worked for a number of hospitality businesses and is a founder of catering and conference consultancy Turpin Smale, is also chair of the Ark Foundation, which was set up to educate the industry's students, employees and management about the dangers of alcohol dependency and other drug misuse.
Turpin was awarded an MBE for charitable services to the hospitality industry in recognition of his work with both Hospitality Action and The Ark Foundation.
Meanwhile Brady, one of the founders of the four-star La Mon Hotel & Country Club in Belfast's surrounding countryside, was also made an MBE for services to tourism and hospitality in Northern Ireland.
Others within the industry who were made MBEs for their services to British tourism were Winifred Clark, deputy director-general, British Holiday and Home Parks Association, Dianne Leeman, manager, Belfast City Tour Services, Belfast City Council and Robert Nicholson, who served as chairman of Somerset Tourism Association and its predecessor, Sedgemoor Tourism Association, for 25 years up until his retirement last year.
Twelve per cent of the 2013 New Year Honours list was made up of people from industry and the economy with a special honours list also released to recognise Olympians, Paralympians and the most successful coaches, following Team GB’s success at the London 2012 Games.
