I was so happy one of our wonderful volunteers that I nominated got shortlisted for the Young Person volunteer at the Time2Volunteer Awards, an event celebrating volunteers across the Humber Region. I love these awards as it gives me a chance to show the world some of the fantastic people we have volunteering for us.
Our shortlisted nominee, Dom, has moved onto his first teaching position after volunteering for us during his years at university and sadly couldn’t get the time off to attend, so my colleague, Jo, from the Step Up Move On programme, joined me to stand in his place at the awards. Dom is passionate about the mission of HEYCU and especially enjoys his volunteering roles within the CLA and SUMO experiences.
The event was held at Doubletree by Hilton and the room was packed with volunteers and those wanting to celebrate their contributions, There were more nominations and attendees than ever before, 140 - and it just goes to show how many people are out there doing good in our community, and how deeply appreciated they are.
We were on a table with some amazing young people who were shortlisted for the same award and the winner was an inspiring 10 year old who is dedicated to fundraising for her chosen charity. Although Dom may be slightly disappointed at not winning this year, we know that as a supporter of children and their dreams he is proud of her achievements and praises her recognition. Honestly every nominee sounded like they were heroes – I didn’t envy the judges!
One of our lovely trustees has gifted a table at our HEYCU Annual Ball to some of our most dedicated volunteers and so luckily we will be able to present Dom with his certificate and the fun goodies we bagged for him next week!
A lovely afternoon and I look forward to any way I get to celebrate the generous people who give their time to support aspirations, build confidence and promote engagement with the children of Hull & East Yorkshire. If you would like to join our volunteering team, please go to the Get Involved section of our website.