Wellingtonian Red Cross humanitarian aid workers Marion Picken and Colleen Clark have each been awarded the New Zealand Operational Service Medal and the New Zealand General Service Medal for their work in Afghanistan.

The New Zealand Operational Service Medal is awarded in recognition for operational service on behalf of New Zealand, and the New Zealand General Service Medal recognises New Zealand personnel (both military and non military) who have served in Afghanistan from December 2001.

New Zealand Red Cross Chief Executive John Ware presented the medals to Mrs Picken and Mrs Clark in a ceremony at Red Cross national office last week.
During the ceremony, Mrs Picken and Mrs Clark's achievements and continued dedication to international humanitarian work on behalf of New Zealand Red Cross was celebrated by Red Cross staff, family and friends.

Health aid worker Mrs Picken has been an international aid worker with New Zealand Red Cross for 12 years, and been on mission to places such as Sudan, Kenya, Pakistan and also Indonesia, where she was awarded the New Zealand Special Service Medal (Asian Tsunami).

The New Zealand Operational Service Medal and the New Zealand General Service Medal have been awarded to Marion for her two missions to Afghanistan, where she worked at hospital north of Kabul as a midwife, nurse and health aid worker. Her work in Kabul included dealing with people injured in car crashes, landmines, and "obstetric disasters".

Mrs Clark has been with Red Cross 23 years, and has been in field service to countries such as Pakistan, Zaire, Thailand and Indonesia, where she was also awarded New Zealand Special Service Medal (Asian Tsunami).

The former St John paramedic has been awarded the New Zealand Operational Service Medal and the New Zealand General Service Medal for her work in Afghanistan where she helped set up the Kabul ambulance service in cooperation with the Afghanistan Red Crescent, the Norwegian Red Cross and the Kuwait Red Crescent Society.

Mrs Picken, who lives in Wellington with her partner Lewis and two young children is getting married this Saturday.

Mrs Clark lives in Wellington with her husband Les, and works on an oil rig off the Taranaki Coast when she is not on mission with Red Cross.
This year, New Zealand Red Cross celebrates 50 years of their aid worker programme, which sees approximately 30 aid workers overseas at any one time.

Most recently, New Zealand Red Cross has sent two aid workers to the Pacific to assist in the wake of cyclone Pat and Rene in February, and to the Solomon Islands to help clean up after the earthquake and tsunami in January this year. New Zealand Red Cross have offered support to the Chilean Red Cross should assistance be required.

New Zealand Red Cross, as part of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, currently supports 24 humanitarian aid workers deployed around the world working in fields such as health, water and sanitation and construction. New Zealand Red Cross' international aid worker programme is supported by NZAID, the government's international aid agency.