Northern Ireland winners

A widow from Belfast who has tirelessly fundraised for Forces charities since the death of her husband in Afghanistan, a community group who has helped raise a substantial sum towards a dedicated Irish Guards Afghanistan Fund and one of Northern Ireland's longest running papers, the News Letter have been named as Northern Ireland's Friends of The Forces.

Amanda Binnie has been given the Individual award, The Glentoran Community Trust has been recognised in the Community category and The News Letter has won the Corporate category for the exceptional support they continue to offer the British Armed Forces.

The winners will have their award certificates presented to them by East Belfast MP Naomi Long at a special ceremony in Belfast later this month.

Naomi Long MP said, "I am very honoured to have been asked to present these awards and I recognise the role of those who have put their lives at risk for their country. This ceremony is a very positive event as it's important to raise awareness of the sacrifices made by the Forces personnel and the need to ensure genuine support for the families who have lost loved ones and also for those who have returned from conflict, and their families. The fact that awards have gone to individuals and organisations from East Belfast shows the real commitment of people in the area to recognising the courage of the Armed Forces and the challenges that face those personnel and their families while they are at war and often long afterwards. 

"I want to take this opportunity to congratulate Amanda Binnie, The Glentoran Community Trust and The News Letter on being given these awards, and praise them for the work they have done to mark the contribution of our Armed Service personnel."

Brian Maguire, The Royal British Legion's County Manager said, "All our winners have put in exceptional efforts to offer help and support to the Armed Forces family and we are extremely pleased to be recognising their dedication through these awards. We received a high number of excellent entries from across the Northern Ireland, however the judges were incredibly impressed by the outstanding work these entrants have been doing. On behalf of the British Armed Forces, The Royal British Legion would like to say a huge thank you to them all."

Amanda Binnie

Mrs Amanda Binnie is the widow of Sergeant Sean Binnie, who was killed during a patrol with the Afghan National army in the vicinity of Woqab, close to Musa Qaleh in Helmand province.

She helped The Royal British Legion to launch the Poppy Appeal in Northern Ireland and took part in the Field of Remembrance ceremony at Westminster Abbey as well as the Festival of Remembrance in the Royal Albert Hall. Amanda has been fundraising tirelessly for the Poppy Appeal and other Armed Forces charities since Sean's death in May 2009.

Mrs Binnie said, "I feel very honoured to have been nominated in the first place, but to have won an award for something that is so dear to my heart will give me the determination and drive to keep going. Thank you all so very much on behalf of my late husband and myself."

Laura Murray from The Royal British Legion said, "We are delighted that Amanda has been chosen as a regional winner for the Friends of the Forces Award. Since the tragic loss of her husband Sean in May last year - Amanda has worked diligently for Service and Ex-Service Charities, from taking part in sponsored walks, to launching the Poppy Appeal in Northern Ireland. Only recently, on the Anniversary of Sean's death, Amanda held a fundraising event - 'A Celebration of Sean's Life' to raise money for the Poppy Appeal. Amanda is exceptional young woman who thoroughly deserves the recognition of this award."

The Glentoran Community Trust

The Glentoran Community Trust is a football supporter's trust which exists to promote Glentoran Football Club within the Irish Premier League. They run various community based projects both at home, in Dublin and as far away as Ghana. The Trust set up the Home Comforts Appeal for Afghanistan which saw its supporters collect, assemble and dispatch almost 1,600 comfort parcels for soldiers serving with the British Armed Forces on Op Herrick 11 in Afghanistan. The Trust has also helped to raise money for the Irish Guard's dedicated Afghanistan Fund which is being used to assist with the rehabilitation of injured guardsmen during the conflict.

Sam Robinson from the Glentoran Community Trust said, "Speaking on behalf of the members of the Glentoran Community Trust, I would like to say that it is both an honour and a privilege to work with the men and women currently serving in Afghanistan and to be recognised by The Royal British Legion for this award. When we first started raising funds and collecting and distributing Comfort Parcels, we had no idea how much the appeal would bring our community together. The response and the feeling of good-will generated by the people of Belfast towards our Forces in theatre has been nothing short of remarkable. This is an award for everyone who took the time to care."

Captain John Donaldson said, "It is a tremendous achievement to bring a local community together and to communicate their support to the troops. I was lucky enough to be on the receiving end of this great kindness and it was a real privilege to receive such generosity."

The News Letter

The News Letter ran a campaign in 2008 for a homecoming parade for First Royal Irish Rifles deployed in Afghanistan. The newspaper has consistently raised the profile of the Armed Forces, and the soldiers placed on the front line in strife-torn regions such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reacting to the award, News Letter editor Darwin Templeton said: "We pride ourselves in our strong relationship with the Armed Forces, which was forged during the Troubles and has developed as a result of the more recent conflicts in other parts of the world. We try to highlight the sacrifices being made by Service men and women on our behalf today and by the generations who served their country in years gone by. Our campaign for a homecoming parade for the troops in Belfast was part of this ethos, and we were delighted when so many people took the opportunity to come out on the day and register their gratitude. We are delighted to have been honoured in this way by The Royal British Legion, and look forward to working with them in the future."

Chairman of the Northern Ireland branch of The Royal British Legion, Tom McCallum, described the announcement as a "just award for a job well done". He said, "It was felt by local Legion members that the News Letter was more than deserving of this award.

"The News Letter has given and continues to give support to The Royal British Legion in Northern Ireland all year round. It is often a thorny path on which we tread and any help is very much appreciated."