The Prime Minister has today, 27 August, recognised Catherine Anderson, from Cumbria, for providing grassroots healthcare in Myanmar.
Catherine is the founder of ‘The Angus McDonald Trust,’ an organisation providing community-based healthcare in Myanmar. When Catherine’s fiancé Angus died suddenly in Yangon in 2013, she was inspired to create the charity to continue his dream of leaving the world a better place than when he found it. Catherine has used the charity to set up healthcare clinics across Myanmar, supporting over 150 tuberculosis patients and 200 people living with HIV. The charity delivers home-based care, nutritional support, counselling services, contraceptives and public-awareness sessions across the community. Alongside the healthcare clinics the charity runs vocational training for patients to help them get back to work following their treatment. Catherine is the incoming CEO of the Jo Cox Foundation.
Catherine is the latest recipient of the Points of Light award, which recognises outstanding volunteers who are making a change in their community and inspiring others. Each day, someone, somewhere in the country is selected to receive the award to celebrate their remarkable achievements.
In a personal letter to Catherine, Prime Minister Theresa May said: “‘The Angus McDonald Trust’ is transforming lives, helping hundreds of people
with HIV and TB to access the medical care they need and receive support to find work when they are healthy enough to do so. Your work to establish and run the charity is a wonderful tribute to Angus’s life.”
Catherine said: “Receiving a Points of Light award is a huge honour, and I am immensely proud to be recognised in this way by the Prime Minister. This award means so much to me because it helps me to highlight the great need that exists in Myanmar, and the importance of reaching out to communities that may seem remote. Because in the end, we are all human beings with exactly the same needs and desires as one another – and that is a really strong message to send out in times that are increasingly tough, and when the disparity between rich and poor seems to widen daily.
“Volunteering is a such a positive way to bridge divides and share goodwill. It’s humbling to think that the Prime Minister has taken time to look into the work ‘The Angus McDonald Trust’ does, and I will continue to do as much as I can to support the children and adults living in extreme poverty in the poorest slum neighbourhoods in Yangon. I hope it inspires others to volunteer, to set up their own initiative, or simply to be more aware of others less fortunate.”
Catherine is the 986th winner of the Points of Light award, which has been developed in partnership with the hugely successful Points of Light programme in the USA. Over 6,000 Points of Light have been awarded in the USA, and former Presidents have publicly supported the partnership with Points of Light UK. There is a similar cross-party approach to the UK programme and MPs from different parties often present their constituents with their Points of Light awards.
Regardless of whether it’s a doctor restoring local monuments in her free time, a father teaching young people life skills, or a local musician giving a voice to lonely people, the Points of Light award honours shining examples of volunteering across the UK.
