NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards cheer on volunteers from NSW Southern region

Volunteers from across the South Coast and the Southern Inland region were today recognised for their outstanding contribution to volunteering in NSW at a special ceremony in Queanbeyan.

The NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards is an annual event run by The Centre for Volunteering and is the biggest celebration of volunteering across the country.

The NSW Volunteer of the Year Award recipients for the South Coast & Southern Inland region are:

The Centre for Volunteering CEO Gemma Rygate said volunteers from across the region had?made an enormous contribution to the local community.

?Volunteers from across the area give their time helping in schools, hospitals, for sporting clubs, the environment, and with so many community based organisations,? Ms Rygate said.

?They all give so much without asking for anything in return.

?It was so pleasing to recognise their outstanding efforts and also celebrate the special contribution of the volunteers chosen to represent the region in November at the State Final of the NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards.?

At 23 years of age the?NSW?Young Volunteer of the Year?for the region Vaughn Edmonds is the youngest ever regional supervisor and technical member for Gymnastics NSW. Vaughn gives his time to help coordinate half a dozen events each year and has helped double the number of participants in gymnastics throughout the region as well as introduce 22 new beginner judges to oversee the sport.

The?Adult Volunteer of the Year?is Yass SES local controller Kurt Bailey who has grown his local unit by more than 30 members. He somehow finds time to also run the local food bank to help out those in need.

Di Skelton Eurobodalla, Transport to Treatment Service
from Malua Bay, Senior Volunteer of the Year and Overall Volunteer of the Year for the region.

Di Skelton makes an incredible difference to the lives of more than 330 patients and their families undergoing treatment for cancer throughout the South Coast each year. Di is the Volunteer Transport Coordinator for Eurobodella Transport to Treatment Services, giving her time every day to make sure that cancer patients have access to transport to and from their treatment services.

Di was the?Senior Volunteer of the Year?and the region?s?Overall NSW Volunteer of the Year.

The 2018 NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards are?supported by principal partners the Department of Family and Community Services NSW and ClubsNSW,?which represents the state?s 1,400 not-for-profit clubs. They are also supported by Etchcraft and Thrifty Car & Truck Rentals.

NSW Minister responsible for Volunteering, the Hon. Ray Williams, said the state’s?2.1 million volunteers contributed more than $5 billion to the NSW economy every year.

?Nominating local volunteers for an award or a certificate is a special way of saying thank you,? Mr Williams said.

?The fact that so many nominations were received this year is recognition of the amazing effort of volunteers across NSW who help build stronger communities.”

ClubsNSW CEO Anthony Ball said that volunteers were?the backbone of registered clubs across NSW.

?ClubsNSW is very proud to support the NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards and every one of the amazing volunteers recognised today,? Mr Ball said.

?Clubs across NSW rely on 32,000 volunteers to help make their venues a vibrant and enjoyable experience,? Mr Ball said.

?They also contribute so much more to our wider community, adding billions of dollars to the NSW economy each year.?

Photos from the event can be viewed here

The Centre for Volunteering would like to thank the generosity of the following organisations for their ongoing support of the NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards:

Background

The NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards is an annual program launched in 2007 by The Centre for Volunteering to recognise the outstanding efforts of the 2 million+ volunteers in NSW, and to promote the importance of volunteering to the community.? The Awards are a celebration of the amazing commitment and achievements volunteers make in our communities and a chance for us to come together to give our thanks. The Awards acknowledge the efforts of thousands of volunteers, volunteer managers, volunteer involving organisations and corporates in bringing about social change through volunteering.

For more information about the 2018 NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards go to?www.volunteering.com.au?or contact?the Awards team via?award@volunteering.com.au?or 02 9261 3600.