Wanganui St John District operations manager Jimmy Seville has been made a Member of the Order of St John.
St John Honours, sanctioned by Her Majesty the Queen as Sovereign Head of St John, mean they are awarded to St John Members (volunteer and paid) who stand out from their peers.
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John Central Region general manager Eddie Jackson said Jimmy's concern for "his people" was always evident in the level of support he offered everyone both personally and clinically. A former British soldier, Jimmy was a member of the specialist SAF Dhofar Force in Oman and has served with the army all over the world.
He settled in New Zealand 22 years ago and was named the top New Zealand Advanced Paramedic in 1995. Two years later he moved into the central region and Wanganui.
His empathy with people means he goes the extra mile for many of his patients and is touched by their plights.
Transferring a patient to a hospice is always a deeply saddening experience, he said. "Well it were the last trip for them, wasn't it? Because they were going there to die, weren't they?"
Jimmy always takes his patients for a bit of a drive-around on hospice transfers for the last time.
In Wellington he took an elderly man out to the airport to watch the planes, then for a drive around the bays and up to the top of Mount Victoria, where he parked up.
"I just threw the back doors open and we chatted and looked out at the view. Poor chap, it was his last little look around, you know."
These days Jimmy is only called out if there has a been a massive accident with multiple casualties.
He is also called upon to help deal with the deaths of small children and young people who have committed suicide.
"It's just crap, isn't it?" he sighed. "But then there's those times where you deliver a baby or a difficult job is successful and turns out well for everyone. It's those jobs that help you through the nasty ones."
Jimmy said he'll be proud when he accepts his medal from the head of St John in New Zealand, the Governor-General Sir Ananad Satyanand. "I think it's some time next year and it'll be very good indeed. I am very happy."
