Northern Ireland War Pensions Committee Pen Pictures 2009.

Chairman: John Davies MBE

John Davies joined the Royal Air Force in 1965 as an Administrative Apprentice. After almost 28 years service, having attained the rank of Warrant Officer, he retired in August 1992.John joined the staff of the Royal Air Forces Association (RAFA) in December 1992 and is currently Regional Manager/Area Welfare Officer Northern Ireland. His responsibilities include the overall administration, welfare and fundraising activities of the Association in the Province, supporting a network of Branches and members.  John also represents RAFA on a wide number of statutory and voluntary bodies within Northern Ireland.John Davies has been a member of the Northern Ireland War Pensions Committee since January 1993 and was Vice-Chairman from 2000 to 2004; he was appointed Chairman in July 2004. He also served as a member of the Central Advisory Committee on War Pensions from 2005 to 2008.

Committee Members:

Ivan Grainger MBE

Ivan Grainger joined the Home Civil Service in 1970, working in Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) Belfast, London and Norwich. In 1981 he was promoted to the post of Staff Welfare Officer based in Manchester and responsible for the welfare of HMSO staff in the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, he was appointed a Fellow of the Institute of Welfare. He returned to Belfast in 1985 as Deputy Director of HMSO Northern Ireland. In 1988 he successfully applied for the vacant post of Chief Officer of the Northern Ireland War Pensioners' Welfare Service. He worked closely with the various ex-service organisations and with the Ulster Defence Regiment and Royal Irish Regiment Welfare Staff to provide help, advice and support to all existing and potential War Pensioners and War Widows. He represented the War Pensioners' Welfare Service on the Minister's Central Advisory Committee for six years. He retired from his post in January 2006, due to ill health.  He became a member of the Northern Ireland War Pension Committee in 2008.

John Dunbar

John Dunbar is a retired Secondary School Headmaster and is now a Church of Ireland Diocesan Lay Reader.
He is currently Chairman of Newtownstewart Townscape Heritage Initiative and Vice-Chairman of the town’s Development Association. He is Deputy Lieutenant of the County Tyrone Lieutenancy.
In his student days he served three years in the Queen’s University Officers’ Training Corps.

Tom Hayes MBE

Mr Tom Hayes joined the Royal Irish Fusiliers in 1964 and after amalgamation served with the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers from 1968 until his retirement in 1986. He continued to serve as a Non-Regular Permanent Staff Regimental Quarter Master Sergeant with the Territorial Army (North Irish Militia and subsequently the 4/5 Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers) in Portadown from 1986 to January 2006. He served in the British Army of the Rhine, Africa, UK, Bahrain, Canada, Northern Ireland, Ukraine and Cyprus. Mr Hayes continued to visit and take an active interest in soldiers from his regiment and others who were injured and discharged prematurely. He is the Divisional Secretary of SSAFA/Forces Help for the County of Armagh and also the Training Officer for the organisation. He is married with two sons.  

Irene Lyttle MBE

Irene Lyttle joined the Army in January 1982 and served with The Ulster Defence Regiment and The Royal Irish Regiment until the disbandment of the Home Service Battalions in March 2008. Throughout her Service she was employed in a variety of posts within Northern Ireland and was appointed an MBE in the November 1996 Operational Honours List. In 2000 Mrs Lyttle became a Battalion Welfare Officer and in July 2003 was appointed as the Regimental Welfare Officer remaining in that post until her retirement in 2008. During the period 2005 – 2007 Mrs Lyttle was a member of The Ulster Defence Regiment and The Royal Irish Regiment Aftercare Service Implementation Team and she is currently employed as the Welfare Service Manager for the organisation. She joined the War Pensions Committee in 2008.

Alberta McMenemy

I became a war Widow when my husband died in Service after twenty years. He was a Sergeant in the Royal Air Force. My two children and I returned to Northern Ireland after being evicted from married quarters in England. From April 1995 I helped the Regional Organiser for Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man War Widows until her death in 2003. I was then elected to take up her position. I became a member of the Northern Ireland War Pensions Committee in January 2007.

Mary Moreland, BA (Hons), MSc. 

Mary served as a ‘Greenfinch’ in the Ulster Defence Regiment during Operation Banner and is a member of the War Widows’ Association of Great Britain; her husband was murdered by the IRA in December 1988. Her Masters qualification is in Counselling and Therapeutic Communication.
Mary is dedicated to public service and is currently employed full time in the Northern Ireland Civil Service gaining extensive experience in administration, leadership, management, and customer service.  She is keen to take a more active role to support all our service and ex-service personnel.

Charles Richardson MBE, UD

Charlie Richardson served in the Ulster Special Constabulary and the Territorial Army prior to joining the Ulster Defence Regiment in 1971.
On his retirement, he continued to work with the Regiment by his involvement with the Regimental Association, of which he became Chairman, and is now a member of the Governing Committee.
He has an interest in all matters pertaining to the Armed Forces, particularly in the field of welfare for those who have served and for their families. He has been a member of the War Pensions Committee for seven years and is an active member of The Royal British Legion.

John Stewart

John joined the Corps of Royal Engineers in 1987 and served as an Armoured Engineer with 32 Armoured Engineer Regiment in Germany. He left the Army in 1994 following a sports injury. Prior to service with the Royal Engineers he served for a brief period with the Part-Time Ulster Defence Regiment.
Particularly interested in the welfare of the ex-service community, John is an active member of The Royal British Legion. He is a member of the Royal Engineers Association (Northern Ireland and Armoured Engineer Branches) and The Regimental Association of the Ulster Defence Regiment CGC.
John joined the Northern Ireland War Pensions Committee in 2008.

Amy Wall

Amy Wall joined the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) in 1973 and served for 10 years, when she resigned on health grounds. She immediately became a member of the newly formed Regimental Association, serving as Secretary and Chairman of the local Branch. She is currently a member of the Governing Committee, representing the eastern area of Northern Ireland.
Prior to joining the UDR, Amy was in a local Civil Defence unit and was an active member of the St. John’s Ambulance Brigade. She has also been a member of The Royal British Legion for over 25 years. She is particularly interested in the welfare of ex-service personnel.

Greg Wilson

Greg has been caring for the Service Community in both his careers since leaving school. He served in the Royal Army Medical Corps for 25 years as a Combat Medical Technician in a variety of world wide, operational and administrative roles. On retirement as Warrant Officer Class 1 (Regimental Sergeant Major), Greg was recruited by The Royal British Legion as Manager for Bennet House, the Welfare Break Centre in Portrush which enables him to maintain a wide network of ex-service, health and social welfare contacts, of great value in the delivery of a genuinely holistic service for former members of the Armed Forces.

Jim Henning (no pen picture).

If you wish to contact the Northern Ireland WPC, please click here