The Queen’s funeral, to be attended by Adelaide dentist, focused on patients with disabilities

An Adelaide dentist dedicated to working with patients with special needs says it will be a “deeply profound and moving” honor to attend the Queen’s funeral.

Trudy Lin is one of the 10 extra Australians who were revealed yesterday as being selected to attend the formal occasion “at the invitation of the palace”.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said they had been chosen because of their “extraordinary contribution to their communities”.

Dr. Lin is a specialist in the provision of oral health care for people with intellectual and physical disabilities and other health challenges.

She is also South Australia’s Young Australian of the Year.

She said it would be an “extraordinary honour” to attend the Queen’s farewell at Westminster Abbey on Monday.

“It really is such a privilege – I don’t know if there are any words that can really begin to explain how it feels,” she told ABC Radio Adelaide’s Jules Schiller.

Dr Lin described the Queen as a “role model” for those who feel a strong commitment to community work, adding that she hoped to follow the late sovereign’s example.

“Oral health care is such an important part of inclusion and participation in society because every person needs to be able to eat and talk and smile,” she said.

“I really think Her Majesty was such a great example of service and I really admired how dedicated and committed she was over seven decades.”

Dr. Lin will fly to Sydney tomorrow to meet the Prime Minister and other participants ahead of their flight to London.

She said it felt particularly gratifying to be able to represent other Australians with similar interests and from similar backgrounds.

“I really feel a strong sense of duty and responsibility to be a worthy representative of our country and its diversity,” she said.

“I have received so many messages from all over the country, many of them [from people] who share an aspect of their identity with me – for example my fellow specialists in specialist dentistry, oral health professionals, Australians of Asian background and also young women.

“It’s been really profound and really moving to see how the presence of us ordinary Australians at Her Majesty’s funeral means so much to so many people.”