WARREN resident Patricia Irving has expressed her excitement that more women from her generation are receiving national recognition for long-term service to their local communities.

Mrs Irving is one of a select few residing in the Western Plains who was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 2022 Australia Day Honours list.

First moving to Warren in 1956 from the Mullaley, Mrs Irving has been involved in a large number of community organisations in the town over the years.

She said one she has been most proud to be a part of is the Country Women's Association, which she has been a representative for at the local level and beyond.

"In my CWA days, I've fulfilled a lot of roles in the community and I've been on the state executive body for nine years," Mrs Irving said.

"I've (also) been a member of the associated countries of the world and been a delegate at many countries all over the world. I was very fortunate to travel to so many different places.

"I'm very proud of my involvement with the CWA because I think they do wonderful things in the bush and I was involved right from when I first came to Warren."

She has also been an ongoing volunteer at the local visitor information centre, was Secretary of the Warren Arts Council, is a ongoing patron of the Warren show, and organised and ran a local recycling initiative in the shire for many years with her family until it was non-viable.

A trained Mothercraft Nurse, Mrs Irving has been a founding member of many local organisations, including the Warren Multi-Purpose Health Service Committee, Warren Voice Interests and Education of Women (VIEW) Club and the Penguin Club.

"The Penguin Club was set up to teach women about meeting procedure and public speaking which are really important skills to have," Ms Irving said.

Education was also a particular passion for Mrs Irving, who completed a Bachelor of Social Science and Bachelor of Arts as an external mature-aged student in the 1980s alongside all her community work.

ABOVE: Members of the Warren community were thrilled to find out Mrs Irving had been awarded an OAM on Australia Day this year. Image supplied

Despite all these achievements, Mrs Irving still said she was shocked to find out she had been nominated for an OAM several months ago.

"I was absolutely astounded to be nominated and I was so deeply honoured and proud to actually receive it," she said.

"You also start thinking of the people who helped you along the way - I certainly didn't do anything on my own, it was all done with the support of my family and other members of the community."

Mayor of Warren Shire Council has since offered his congratulations to Mrs Irving, pointing out her appointment was very well deserved.

"(Patricia's) efforts have had a major impact on many sectors of our community, particularly in the areas of health, education and as an advocate for rural women through her long-term involvement with the Country Women’s Association,” Mayor Quigley said.

“On behalf of our grateful community, I offer my congratulations to Patricia, and thank her for all she does for Warren Shire."

As for one of Mrs Irving's daughter's Stephanie Van Lubeck, she said the appointment was a fabulous achievement and a reflection of the contribution made by rural women across decades.

"I think it's lovely that a woman of her generation, where this sort of stuff wasn't really expected, has been recognised in this way - I think also there should be full credit to my father (David Irving) who supported her the entire way through," Mrs Van Lubeck said.

"I'm sorry it didn't happen probably 10 to 15 years ago, when she was much more physically active and had a greater presence in the community, because I think then more people would have joined her in doing more community work."

According to the Governor General, of the 732 Awards in the 2022 General Division of the Order of Australia appointments, women have seen their highest ever representation, making up 47 per cent of the awards, while 45 per cent have are for service to local communities.

As someone contributing to both these statistics, Mrs Irving said she thought it was a wonderful achievement for Australian women.

"In my lifetime, it's a huge change for so many women to be honoured - so many women over the years have done so much for their societies and never had any recognition," she said.

"I'm sure it's a trend that will continue to happen in future."

According to the office of the NSW Governor the Investiture Ceremony for the 2022 Australia Day Honours will take place in Sydney and, at this stage, will likely be held in May, with invitations to be sent out to recipients like Mrs Irving over the next month or so.