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Highland Heroes 2025: Emergency and crisis services shortlist revealed – VOTE NOW!





VOTE for your emergency and crisis services heroes by midnight on Monday, February 10.

NHS Highland Organ and Tissue Donation

Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee NHS Highland Organ and Tissue Donation.
Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee NHS Highland Organ and Tissue Donation.

It’s a conversation many of us avoid, yet one that holds the power to save lives.

The NHS Highland Organ and Tissue Donation team, based at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, has been shortlisted for a Heroes award for the incredible empathy and emotional strength it brings to families facing unthinkable loss.

This close-knit team guides patients and families through courageous conversations, helping them consider the gift of organ donation.

Specialist nurse Rebecca Shekyls explains: “Organ donation can bring life out of tragedy. Families we speak to have already heard the worst news imaginable, but they tell us the decision to honour their loved ones wishes, or do what they believed their loved one would have wanted, brings them comfort and hope. That bravery is humbling.”

Rebecca concluded: “The donors and their families are the real heroes here; a single conversation about organ donation today could be the difference between life and death for someone else tomorrow. We feel honoured to help them reach the right decision for them and their loved one.”

Invergordon RNLI

Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee Invergordon RNLI.
Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee Invergordon RNLI.

“Boats and vessels can be replaced, but people cannot,” this powerful mantra drives the volunteer crew of the Invergordon Royal National Lifeboat Institution to remain calm under pressure and rescue those in need.

The crew has recently been shortlisted for an award in recognition of their heroic efforts last summer when they rescued two holidaymakers stranded in the Moray Firth Riff Bank after their yacht suffered engine failure.

The dramatic rescue was captured on video by the couple, who later shared the footage with the crew.

Local spokesperson Mike MacDonald explained: “When our pagers go off, we have no idea what we’re responding to. It could be a missing person, a vessel in distress, or someone in the water. We must be trained to handle every situation calmly and methodically.”

Reflecting on the rescue, he added: “Watching the footage of the yacht rescue gave us a different perspective and valuable insights to learn from.”

Mike concluded, “It’s an honour to be nominated and shortlisted for emergency and crisis services award. Every time we are called out, we entrust our lives to one another with the shared goal of saving or helping those in distress at sea.”

Mikeysline

Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee Mikeysline. Photo: Alison White Photography
Highland Heroes 2025 emergency and crisis services award nominee Mikeysline. Photo: Alison White Photography

When a person is navigating one of their darkest moments in life, irrespective of the day of the year, Mikeysline is there to offer support.

The suicide prevention and mental health charity was established in 2015 following the deaths of two good friends within 48 hours of each other.

Although based in Inverness city centre, it provides text- based support and offers outreach services throughout the Highlands.

One of the nominations for Mikeysline said: “Chief executive Emily Stokes works tirelessly to keep the charity at the forefront of people’s minds so it can raise the funds it needs to carry out vital work.”

Emily said: “It’s a very kind thing to say and the truth is Mikeysline simply couldn’t operate without its volunteers. They come from different walks of life and cover a broad age spectrum; one thing they often have in common is that their own lives may have been touched by suicide and that gives our volunteers a level of empathy and compassion that supports people in crisis to feel deeply understood.

Their passion, time, dedication to the cause is what keeps us doing our best to make the quality of people's lives worthwhile and worth fighting for and worth carrying on for.”

Mikeysline works with businesses, provides 1:1 support in secondary schools, raises wider awareness that “it’s ok not to be ok”, and is building resilience in young children through its work in primary schools.”

Openreach Scotland is sponsoring the award for emergency and crisis services hero.

Robert Thorburn, partnership director for Openreach Scotland, said: “We’re excited to be involved with the brilliant Highland Heroes awards once again this year. We can’t celebrate the special people who put the heart in the Highlands without your input, so get voting now!

“There’s an award for everyone to get behind, and our category recognises the vital role of emergency workers. It’s always incredibly humbling to hear of the heroic ways they support local people, communities and the many visitors who enjoy our wonderful scenery and hospitality.

“We’re doing our bit to keep folk connected, with our new full fibre broadband network continuing to expand everywhere from Cromarty and Onich to Spean Bridge and Inverness. So it’s now even quicker to vote for your Highland Heroes online.

“We’re really looking forward to celebrating the Highlands’ unsung heroes once again, and hearing their truly inspirational stories. So please help your hero get the recognition they deserve.”


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