Lord Lieutenant of Ross and Cromarty, Skye and Lochalsh, Janet Bowen presented the badges to those who had served in the armed forces from all over the county at the Council Buildings in Dingwall.

In a brief introduction before talking individually to each veteran Mrs Bowen paid tribute to the service given to their country and thanked them on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen.

Some of the recipients had served in WWII, while others had served in more recent times.

It was, she said, "a poignant reminder of the sacrifices currently being made in Afghanistan" and she called on veterans, whose only qualification is to have served in the armed forces, to wear their badge with pride.

Following a minute's silence, the Rev Russel Smith led a brief act of remembrance after which Mrs Bowen presented the badges to the veterans, many of whom had friends and family in attendance.

One of the recipients was Freida MacKenzie, daughter of Margaret Collyer, from Wester Balintore, whose husband Alfred served in the Seaforth Highlanders between 1940 and 1945.

Mrs MacKenzie, an operational support officer with Highland Council TEC services in Dingwall, told the Ross-shire Journal, "My mother was 90 a fortnight ago and she will be delighted when I give her this badge to go with my father's medals.

"I was only eight when my father died. He suffered from TB at the end of the war and his health was not good and he spent a lot of time in and out of hospital.

Ross-shire veterans are pictured with the Lord Lieutenant Janet Bowen. Ian Rhind 01349 877218

"He died in 1958.

"My father served with the 4th Battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders and was captured by Rommel at St Valery in June 1940. He joined up after his brother Victor ran away to enlist and my father, who was in the TA at the time, went as well.

"But they were separated after St Valery and taken to different prisoner of war camps.

"My father got himself moved from camp to camp in search of his brother and incredibly they met up again. In fact, they escaped together before the end of the war.

"They were being moved from the camp they were in but managed to get across the Polish border and into France. But I would love to find out more details about what happened to him during the war and what prisoner of war camps he was in."

She added, "The service itself was very emotional, all the names were read out and the Lord Lieutenant spoke about the sacrifices that had been made - it was very moving. There were some young people there as well; it's just a shame there wasn't more there."

Men and women who had served in the Armed Forces at any time are qualified to receive a Veteran's Badge.

Application forms are available from Mrs June Forsyth at the Council Buildings.

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