A KIND-HEARTED Glasgow woman has been awarded with a British Empire Medal (BEM) for her charity work.
Swaran Chowdhury, also known as Judy, started volunteering with Kidney Research UK in 2014 to spread awareness of kidney disease and encourage organ donation.
Through the charity's peer educator programme - the first of its kind in Scotland - Judy engages with people in South Asian communities by encouraging them to speak openly about the disease and the taboos around it.
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Judy said: “I never expected to be given such an amazing award for simply volunteering.
"When I joined the organisation eight years ago, there was so much that needed to be done, so many people to talk to and a lot of information that had to be shared.
"I really hope that somewhere amongst the many conversations I had, at least one person was able to understand more about this horrible disease and make an informed choice on organ donation.”
Now in her 70s, Judy's tireless and selfless efforts as a volunteer have led to her receiving the prestigious award, given to her by Deputy Lieutenant Dr Rajan Mandok in an intimate ceremony at Glasgow City Chambers.
She and her husband Surjit - who was awarded an MBE for his work as a peer educator in 2017 - now plan to educate the next generation.
Neerja Jain, health equalities programme manager for Kidney Research UK said: “When we first launched the peer educator programme, we were facing quite a challenge to earn the trust of certain communities and speak to them about key issues, despite minority ethnic groups being disproportionately affected by kidney disease.
"With the help of fantastic volunteers like Judy who are respected and trusted members of the community, we have been able to talk openly to communities who were previously sceptical of taboo topics like organ donation.
"Since the programme started there has been a marked rise in the number of organ donations from minority donors, saving people’s lives.
"Judy’s award is very much well deserved as she has been so dedicated and determined, and it's been an absolute pleasure working with her.
"It is wonderful to see our volunteers getting the recognition they truly deserve.”
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