Northumberland Sport Celebrates
Ashleigh Chapman, Stephen Miller and Mark Storey
Northumberland's most successful Paralympian, Stephen Miller, winner of 3 Gold medals and former world record holder, was recently guest of honour at the MacDonald Linden Hall Golf & Country Club in Northumberland, to help celebrate the achievements of Northumberland's young sporting volunteers.
Organised and delivered by Northumberland Sport and funded by Sport England, young volunteers from across the county were joined by club and school representatives to celebrate the achievements of volunteers through Step into Sport, a programme designed to engage young people aged 16-19 and encourage them to volunteer within quality community clubs. A number of other young voluntary initiatives and programmes across the county were also invited to share in the experience.
Northumberland Sport Chairman Steve Cram MBE and the Great North Run founder Brendan Foster MBE, both huge advocates for the role volunteers' play in sport, sent messages of encouragement to the volunteers on the night via a video link. They both explained how volunteers played a key role in their own personal achievements and how volunteers are still the life blood for sport in Britain today. Steve also emphasised the significant part volunteers will play in delivering a successful London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games.
To recognise just some of the magnificent achievements of our volunteers, many of whom have provided in excess of 50 volunteer hours in their local communities, two awards for best male & female were presented by Stephen Miller. Jamie Wright-Jefferson won the best male award for his voluntary work at Bomarsund Cricket Club, which was presented to Mark Storey (the club volunteer co-ordinator) as Jamie unfortunately was not able to attend. Ashleigh Chapman won the best female award for her voluntary work at Ashington Swimming Club.
Doug Lowery, Executive Director for Northumberland Sport said:
"We are delighted to have hosted this event, which recognises the tremendous success of the various volunteer programmes in Northumberland and the dedication, motivation and enthusiasm shown by each of our volunteers and supported by clubs and schools in Northumberland. It was also great to be able to invite people involved in different volunteering initiatives to show the depth and diversity of volunteering opportunities for people in the county.
I would like to congratulate Jamie and Ashleigh on winning their awards, which are both richly deserved. I would also like to take the opportunity to thank Stephen Miller who once again proved to be a real inspiration which will hopefully encourage all our volunteers who attended the event to continue their voluntary activities in the future."
Stephen Miller said, "It was terrific to be a part of such a wonderful event, which recognises the tremendous achievements of those that volunteer in Northumberland. In my sporting disciplines, volunteers are so often the unsung heroes, so it was great to see so many young volunteers being recognised at this event for their outstanding achievements, which do make a significant impact in their local communities."
