Volunteers recognised
VASLAN honour those who help
Outstanding examples of volunteering were recognised at South Lanarkshire’s Volunteering Awards ceremony earlier this month, at the University of the West of Scotland’s Hamilton Campus.
Friends, families, fellow volunteers and other community members packed a lecture theatre to honour special individuals who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in volunteering for local charities and community groups.
Co-ordinated by Voluntary Action South Lanarkshire (VASLAN) to mark the national Volunteers’ Week celebrations, inspiring stories were heard of volunteering in aid of a variety of causes.
VASLAN were inundated with 136 nominations for volunteers working in roles helping out youth clubs, fundraising for dementia services, sports clubs, community cafes, arts and crafts groups, upcycling schemes, credit unions and much more.
A judging panel, made up of representatives of VASLAN, South Lanarkshire Council, Skills Development Scotland, the UWS and others had the difficult task of whittling down entries to select five worthy winners who had made a notably significant contribution.
Nan Agnew, a volunteer at a Community Café at Biggar’s Gillespie Centre for the past 18 years was named Long-serving Volunteer of the Year, Kenny Stuart of Clydesdale Community Initiatives was named Environmental Volunteer of the Year, while Gilbert Feron of Lightburn Elderly Association Project was named Trustee of the Year.
Law and District Amateur Athletic Club’s Bobby Hill picked up the Young Volunteer of the Year award, for his role motivating youngsters as cross-country captain and also as a board member, being instrumental in gaining charitable status for the club.
But it was Maureen Fitzpatrick, a volunteer with Kilbryde Hospice, who was chosen as South Lanarkshire’s Volunteer of the Year, for her extraordinary fundraising efforts which raised £33,000 for the hospice, including running a knitting stall at Hairmyres Hospital.
Delighted to have been selected as South Lanarkshire’s outstanding volunteer, Maureen spoke of why volunteering is so important to her: “I was very surprised to find out I’d been nominated so to have won feels fantastic, I can’t believe it!
“Volunteering makes me part of the community, gets me up in the morning, it keeps me going and I enjoy what I do.
“I would encourage anyone to get involved - it’s the best thing I’ve ever done, I’m doing something I believe in and I’ve never met so many lovely people.”
Awards were presented by River City star Keira Lucchesi, Depute Provost Pam Clearie, Deputy Lord Lieutenant Louis Munn, Councillor Jean Mckeown and VASLAN chairman Ian Barcroft.
If you are interested in finding out more about volunteering in South Lanarkshire, you can contact VASLAN on 01698 300 390 or email volunteer@ vaslan.org.uk.