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Meet our community heroes
NEAABE120210a6, eastwood and Kimberley Advertiser New years honours 2012. Donald Chambers.
COMMUNITY heroes were presented with New Year Honours awards by the editor of the Eastwood and Kimberley Advertiser last week.
People who go out of their way to do good work in the community were recognised by Advertiser editor Peter Hemmett at a special ceremony hosted at Rumbletums Café in Kimberley last Friday.
Janet Enever and Stan Cooke were given awards for the tireless work they do in Brinsley, helping pensioners and raising money for charity.
Each Christmas the pair host a party for 150 pensioners and they are always at the forefront of organising any charity event.
The person who nominated Stan said he ‘would do anything for anybody’ and this year Janet organised the area’s biggest Royal wedding party for charity.
Every Christmas Day Janet cooks up to 25 dinners for pensioners unable to do it themselves and she is first on hand to help people in the village out with everything from filling in forms to standing by them and supporting them through employment tribunals.
She said: “I do it because it makes us a more close knit community. People always say to me ‘you’ve made Brinsley proud’.”
Tony Swift and his stepson Adam Butler from Nuthall were presented with an award for their huge Christmas light display that annually raises money for a local hospice.
Adam sets the lights up and Tony stands out in the cold seven nights week, for six weeks, between 4pm and 10pm handing out sweets.
The display has got more and more successful each year, and last year 500 people turned up to the ‘light house’ on the opening night when the family put on drinks and snacks for visitors.
Since starting the displays nine years ago, £11,000 has been raised for Hayward Hopsice.
Mr Swift said: “I love Christmas. It’s a time for families and I love seeing the kids faces. They come from all over.”
Don Chambers was described by the person who nominated him as a ‘vital and much respected member of the local community’.
He goes into schools to do assemblies educating children on safety and other important issues, is a Lay Preacher at the Christian Church regularly reading sermons when he is needed. He is also a member of the Magic Circle and uses his magic as entertainment in schools, local clubs and organisations.
The Art Class In Eastwood were also nominated for an award. Organisers run a weekly class at the Dora Philips Hall.
Gwen, Audrey, Brian, Mike and Diane help the artists with their work and book outside artists to come in and inspire them with fresh ideas.
Audrey said: “We were amazed to win. It’s a very friendly club and people say they love the atmosphere.”
Deb Lee set the Ryan Lee Trust Fund up in memory of her teenage son who died of a brain tumour in 2010.
It has so far raised £14,000.
Deb worked hard to put the trust together and is constantly organising charity events to raise money.
She has organised many fundraising events including charity car washes, pampering sessions and music nights. The most successful event so far was a sports day held last May that raised £5,000.
The trust fund raises money for specialist equipment so terminally ill children can live at home instead of being kept in hospital.
She said when her son was ill, she struggled to find equipment that allowed her son to live comfortably at home, and she wanted to help other people in the same position.
“It was so hard,” she added. “We had all sorts of problems and I don’t want children and families to go through what we went through.”
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Friday 25 May 2012
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