THE Queen has personally thanked a North Yorkshire community stalwart for her work.

The monarch has written to Margaret Price from Stillington, near Easingwold, as part of the Maundy celebrations.

Under normal circumstances Margaret would have been presented with symbolic coins during the annual Royal Maundy service, but instead received the gift by post after the event was cancelled for the second year running due to coronavirus restrictions.

“I am delighted to send you the Maundy gift which I hope you will accept as an expression of my personal thanks to you for all that you have done to enrich the life of your community,” the Queen said in her letter.

Margaret is a reader and the lay dean, and organizes and delivers Explorers a Christian after school club in the village school. She also volunteers at the community-run village shop, and looks after some of the older members of the village community, doing shopping and deliveries for them.

She said: “I’m very fortunate to live in a village with great community spirit, and to be one of many church members inspired to serve here, particularly in our successful and long-standing village shop; receiving the Royal Maundy Gift is a lovely surprise and I feel very honoured but very humbled.”

The Royal Maundy is an ancient ceremony which originated in the commandment Christ gave after washing the feet of his disciples the day before Good Friday.