Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Obituary: Highland D-Day veteran Sinclair Houston

Sinclair Houston of Thurso
Sinclair Houston of Thurso

Tributes have been paid to D-Day veteran Sinclair Houston, who died at his home in Thurso aged 102.

The retired ironmonger was one of the last servicemen from the far north to serve in the Second World War.

Three years ago he was presented with the Legion d’Honneur medal – France’s highest national military award – for the part he played in the Normandy landings.

After the war, the father-of-two was a stalwart supporter of the Royal British Legion Scotland. He was one of three local businessmen who in the 1960s underwrote the work to replace the RBLS clubrooms in Thurso at the town’s Riverside.

Former branch chairman Robert Allan said: “Sinclair was a very popular, modest individual who was a great supporter of the Legion.

“He was always delighted when he was asked to help raise the flag at a service and he was always present at the branch’s Remembrance Day commemoration.

“He was a very valued member and will be sadly missed.”

Mr Houston, whose father owned the one-time mill and foundry at Millbank, ran an ironmonger’s in the town’s High Street.

He remained active in his long retirement, taking a keen interest in local current affairs, vintage vehicles and gardening.

He and his wife Norma also enjoyed regular trips away in their campervan.

On his 100th birthday in April 2017, Mr Houston was presented by the then Caithness Lord Lieutenant Anne Dunnett with a card from the Queen.

Asked then about the secret to a long life, he replied: “I think it is luck. I have a good wife and family and good friends. My life is very happy.”

He is survived by his wife, sons Michael and Ronald and two grand-daughters.

His funeral is being held at Thurso West Church at noon today followed by his interment at Thurso Cemetery.