A husband and wife are celebrating after they were both recognised in the New Year Honours list.
Bob and Pat Earl have both been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to Radley near Abingdon. They have lived in the village for 34 years.
The list highlights the achievements and service of people across the UK.
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In addition to their work in Radley, for which they have been specifically recognised, they have been deeply involved in other charitable work in Oxfordshire.
This includes Oxfordshire Scouts, St Michael at the North Gate church, and Oxford Winter Night Shelter.
Bob and Pat said in a statement: “We were very surprised to have been nominated and humbled and grateful for the BEM.
"We have always enjoyed volunteering and giving our time to others. We have never done it to be thanked or given awards, and we feel there are others who are equally or more deserving than us.”
They have been supportive parents, parents-in-law and doting grandparents to their six grandchildren.
Until her retirement, Pat had a career in high street banking, then as an office administrator and later training as an accounting technician working in the bursary of an Oxford college and finally helping Bob run his business.
Until his retirement, in 2013, Bob had a successful career firstly as a joiner, then a building surveyor and later running his own building company.
The shop has a paid manager, a management committee and dozens of volunteers.
Pat quickly got involved in the practicalities of the shop and the need to support other volunteers and promote the shop.
Bob project-managed the fitting out of the shop and continued to take care of maintenance issues.
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Their commitment to making the shop work was based on their desire to ensure the villagers continued to have easy access to a general store and newsagents for day-to-day essentials, something particularly important for the older generation.
He led the shop through the Covid years and finally stepped down as chairman in 2022, but still continues as a volunteer.
Pat became involved in the operations team in 2008, supporting the manager and covering for his holidays.
She joined the management committee in 2009 and continued in that role until 2022.
Bob and Pat can also be found behind the shop counter as regular volunteers.
The shop has expanded its range of products and has been able to run with sufficient volunteer staff.
During Covid, the couple led the team to adjust the opening hours and reach out to people who were working from home to encourage them to ‘fill the gaps’.
This was done successfully and access to the shop, and its takings, were largely unaffected throughout the pandemic.
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About the author
Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here.
He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.
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