Long service recognised

A dedicated trio from 1st Battalion The Highlanders have been recognised for their long and outstanding service to the Cadet Forces.

Lieutenant Doreen Bentham (63), Company Sergeant Major Instructor Michael Donachie (58) and Company Sergeant Major Instructor Lorraine Woolley (51) all received clasps to their Cadet Force Medals.

Lt Bentham and CSMI Woolley were presented with their second clasps to the Cadet Force Medal, which recognises 24 years of service to the ACF and CSMI Donachie was presented with his first clasp to the medal, which recognises 18 years of service.

For Lt Bentham, she started her ACF career in the early 90s with Nottinghamshire ACF before moving to Scotland in 2006 to run a hotel with her husband, where she transferred over to 1 Highlanders as part of their Caithness Company’s Brora Detachment, where she was later made the Detachment Commander. Doreen is currently appointed Detachment Commander at Farr Detachment, based in Farr High School in Bettyhill.

CSMI Woolley, who is the battalion’s longest serving female adult instructor, joined the Cadets in 1992 as an instructor with the battalion’s Inverness Company at Culloden Detachment and was later appointed the Detachment’s Commander in 1996. On top of running a detachment, CSMI Woolley is also quite active on the shooting front and is part of the Battalion Target Rifle Coaching Team, which she’s been part of for several years. Due to her outstanding work in coaching the shooting team she was later appointed the shooting officer of Moray Company in 2013. She is currently the Detachment Commander of Dingwall Detachment in Ross Company.

CSMI Donachie has been part of the Armed Forces and Cadet Forces for most of his life. He started as a soldier in The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (now Balaklava Company, 5 Scots) and completed 12 years’ service. Following that he had a period with the TA (now Army Reserve). After leaving the TA he joined the battalion in the late 90s as an ACF Instructor at Wick Detachment, where he has been ever since. When he is not at cadets, Michael works as a decommissioning operator at the Dounreay site.

All three presentations were made by 1 Highlander’s Commandant Colonel Iain Cassidy at each of the adult’s detachments in front of their cadets.

The Cadet Force Medal is awarded to recognise long and efficient service by Commissioned Officers and non-commissioned adult instructors of the UK Cadet Forces and is awarded for 12 years’ service, with additional clasps awarded for every six additional years of service.