Mercia Marina was delighted at the opportunity to be involved with the South Derbyshire Community Awards which is a new initiative to recognise and celebrate the good work done for the community by volunteers, voluntary groups and local businesses.
The Awards were organised by local charity South Derbyshire CVS and Swadlincote & District Chamber of Trade, with sponsorship from 6 other local businesses including Mercia Marina.
A panel, made up of the Award Sponsors, met to consider all the nominations and agree the shortlist and winners.
They shortlisted 3 nominees for each Award categories below:
Long Service Award
Unsung Hero
Young Volunteer of the Year
Volunteer Team of the Year
Compassionate Company
Local Charity or Voluntary Group
Toyota Special Award
Given the categories we immediately thought that volunteer team of the year was perfect as we know the importance of these volunteer teams in the marina community and indeed the local community as without them we would never achieve the many conservation awards, have the community first aiders, community events and more and we will continue to invest and fund these valuable volunteers.
We had 58 Community Award nominations in total, and there were 12 nominations for the Volunteer Team category including the very active Mercia First Aid Team.
The 3 teams shortlisted were The Hoover Group, South Derbyshire CVS Befriending Volunteers and Hilton Youth Group.
Tony Preston Sales and Marketing Manager at Mercia Marina was honored to be invited to the awards night to present the award to the winner of Volunteer Team of the Year. What was even better though was to see all the volunteers of all ages really enjoining themselves. It was a real party atmosphere and was apparent how much the volunteers appreciated the event and a welcome gathering to reflect on all they have done for others and their community. The event was superbly organised with food and drink on arrival, party items on the table and even a magician who visited each table.
The 3 teams shortlisted were The Hoover Group, South Derbyshire CVS Befriending Volunteers and Hilton Youth Group.
Hilton Youth Group was set up just over 12 months ago in 2016 to try and engage young people aged 10-16 in positive activities. A lack of facilities in the village meant young people were disengaged from their local community and Hilton Youth Group gave them somewhere to go and feel safe.
Aston Hoover Group (Help Our Own Village Eradicate Rubbish), are an informal group of six volunteers who pick up litter and other debris on a monthly basis. The group has turned out every month during the past 9 years.
South Derbyshire CVS Befriending Volunteers area a team of volunteers provide befriending support to vulnerable members of the community who are experiencing loneliness and or isolation. They are a kind and compassionate bunch of individuals who share their time to brighten the lives of others
The winner after all teams were called up was South Derbyshire CVS Befriending Volunteers and they were ecstatic for being nominated and winning and proceeded to party the night away.
