Inspiring Aberdeenshire awards recognise community spirit
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The community work achieved by groups and individuals has been recognised in the Inspiring Aberdeenshire awards.
Nearly four months after the event was originally due to be held, the winners were announced during a virtual ceremony.
Inspiring Aberdeenshire is held in June each year to celebrate the work of communities who are not often recognised anywhere else for their dedication and community spirit.
Awards are handed out in a range of categories including community spirit, lifetime achievement and courage, to name just three of the eight.
People were nominating their family and friends across Aberdeenshire late in 2019, and the awards were meant to be held in person in June at Haddo House.
When it became clear that running the event was not going to be an option, the team got to work preparing a virtual ceremony, which was held online on Tuesday evening and hosted by broadcaster Fiona Stalker alongside Aberdeenshire Provost councillor Bill Howatson.
Speaking after the event concluded Provost Howatson said: “This has been a year like no other, and the importance of our communities has been in the spotlight more than ever.
"The nominations for Inspiring Aberdeenshire this year were made before Covid-19 arrived and turned our lives upside down, but the pre-pandemic stories still need to be told and heard.
"We were determined to run this event and celebrate the people who make Aberdeenshire tick and the team did us proud making sure we could all come together and celebrate.
"My huge thanks to everyone who had a role in making this event happen. Whilst it is not new to run virtual award ceremonies, it was certainly new for us.
“It is also really incredible to see the work that is still being done, day to day, to improve life for people in all corners of Aberdeenshire. The work of the finalists is extraordinary and my most sincere thanks for everything you do.”
The Cultural Award was jointly won by Iona Fyfe and Chris Reid. Iona, from Huntly, particularly promotes Doric songs and stories and performs ballads and folk songs from across Aberdeenshire to a global audience.
Over the last 36 years, Chris has been the driving force behind the Fraserburgh Heritage Society, as a dedicated and proactive leader.
Chris has responsibility for recruiting volunteers, staffing the Heritage Centre, social media, record keeping and curation.
The Local Hero Courage Award was won by Paul Cheyne. Paul and his family were at Balmedie beach in August last year when they were alerted to a young boy in trouble in the water.
The boy and his older brother had gone out on bodyboards, but the tide took the nine-year-old out further than was safe and he began getting into difficulty.
Paul swam out and rescued the boy, taking him to safety in deeper calm water before bringing him to shore to his relieved family.
Speaking in the nomination form, the young boy’s family said that Paul will forever hold a special place in their hearts, and they know they can never fully repay his bravery.
The Inspirational Volunteer Award was won by the Relay for Life Peterhead Committee. Its commitment to running and promoting the 24-hour relay event in the town has generated £2 million for Cancer Research.
Each person on the committee volunteers their own time to recruit new members, promote the event, and raise as much money as they can, while honouring the memories of those taken too soon.
The Aberdeenshire’s Future Award was won by Thomas Truby for the work he does picking litter in Torphins and assisting other communities.
Portlethen Home Care Team won the Heart of Aberdeenshire Caring Award for the help they give to services users with a range of conditions from Motor Neurone Disease to Parkinson’s and others.
The Beautiful Aberdeenshire Environmental Award was won by Marion Montgomery who has set up the Paws on Plastic group, which aims to to encourage dog walkers to pick up just one or two pieces of plastic every time they are out on a walk, take them home and recycle them. Despite being new, the group has more than 10,000 Facebook followers.
Pieter voor de Poorte was awarded the Community Spirit accolade for his work with the Catterline Braes Action Group.
The Inspiring Aberdeenshire Lifetime Achievement award was won by Brian McCann who has volunteered with the Children’s Panel in the area for more than 20 years.
