Fear of blood fails to stymie accolades for Dannevirke St John stalwart

Delwyn Walker has been admitted as a member of the Order of St John. Photo / Leanne Warr

When Delwyn Walker first approached St John to volunteer, she said she didn't like the sight of blood.

"I told them not to spend any money training me because the first sight of blood I'd be gone."

That was in 2006 when she approached them initially because her two boys were involved in motocross.

That led to her getting involved in the youth programme, then a casual contract and now a fulltime job as divisional manager of the cadet programme.

Now the Dannevirke woman has been admitted as a member of the Order of St John.

She said she was surprised when she got the letter last year telling her she had been nominated and asking if she would accept the nomination.

It was news she could not even share with her husband as it had to be kept confidential until the organisation announced it publicly this year.

The honour is given to those who had shown dedication to, and in line with, the mission of St John of New Zealand.

Each admission or promotion within the order was sanctioned by the Queen.

Becoming a member of the Order of St John was a privilege, Walker said, and it was not something given to everyone who was involved with the organisation.

Part of the privilege was helping to promote the order and knowing a bit about its history, she said.

She was also asked to help promote the order in the community and do some fundraising for the St John Eye Hospital in Jerusalem.

Walker had also studied part-time for five years to complete a Bachelor of Health Science in Paramedicine. However, she wasn't intending to become a paramedic herself.

"I'm happy just to assist the paramedics. I know their jobs so I can assist them quite well. I can do my job better, knowing what their job is."

She said she enjoyed supporting the community through her work, which included CPR refreshers or ensuring that AED (defribrillator) machines were well maintained.

Walker was doing recruitment for the ambulance car, also known as the first response car and, through that, she looked for volunteers for other parts of the organisation.

She said she wasn't looking to volunteer elsewhere as these days she was a bit "stretched thin".

Last year, she started a family business in homekill, calling on her experience as a qualified butcher, having done an apprenticeship in her mid-teens.

"I never thought I'd go back to working with meat again after so many years but I'm back to homekill and the family's all involved in it."

She had also worked at the meatworks for 15 years, intitially in boning, but then got into health and safety and working in first aid.

Walker said ambulance work was different and she considered herself very lucky and very sheltered in her operational role.

"I haven't seen a lot of what my colleagues go through."

Working in the same small town where she lived could be hard, she said.

"You know a lot of the people you're responding to but it's also sometimes better that you've got a rapport straight away when you arrive there because you know the people."

Working for St John was very rewarding and many people did show their appreciation.

"It's nice when you get thanked by people," she said.

Walker joins four other members of the order from Dannevirke and another three from the surrounding district.