Hot on the heels of International Volunteers Day on Tuesday 5 December, Wollongong City Council has announced the winners of the 2023 Council's Environment Volunteer Awards.
The awards event, held on Friday 8 December, provided an opportunity to recognise those who contribute to making Wollongong a great place to live, work and play.
One of the award categories was for Rise & Shine, the city's longest-running environmental clean-up program. It was first established in 1986, following the actions of one community member who exemplified the spirit of Rise & Shine.
In 1986, at the age of 70, the late Basil Ryan collected 110 bags of rubbish from a spot near his home in West Wollongong. Using his ingenuity to use a rope pulley system to lift and load the bags for removal, he managed to clean up his community and inspire a volunteer program that continues to this day.
Over the years, Rise& Shine has seen hundreds of community volunteers and organisations roll up their sleeves to protect their environment. It has also inspired other Council-run volunteer programs such as Bushcare, Fiready and Dunecare, which work together to rally the community to solve environmental issues.
Image: Dilys Hoser and Wollongong City Lord Mayor Cr Bradbery.
The winners of this years' awards are:
Rise & Shine Awards
- David Williamson – Basil Ryan Award
- Dragons Abrest Illawarra – Community Group Business Award
- Jason and Memphis Marshall – Citizen Award
- Dilys Hoser – Silver (Rise & Shine) Award
- Merilyn House – Silver (Rise & Shine) Award
Fiready Awards
- Cathy Carr – Fiready Volunteer of the Year
Bushcare Awards
- Alan Lowis – Bushcare Volunteer of the Year
- Steve Higson – Anders Bofeldt Award (this award is in memory of Anders Boefeldt, a talented and self-trained botanist)
- Odenpa Bushcare – Community Spirit Award
Dunecare Awards
- Teresa Nuske – Dunecare Volunteer of the Year
Image: Merilyn House with Wollongong City Lord Mayor Cr Bradbery.
Wollongong City Lord Mayor Councillor Gordon Bradbery AM was pleased to acknowledge the winners of this year's awards.
"All of these programs — Rise & Shine, Bushcare, Dunecare and Fiready — could not operate without the support and dedication of the people and organisations who volunteer their time," Cr Bradbery said.
"These extraordinary programs bring people together to participate in a range of activities that all contribute to improving our local environment. This can look like picking up rubbish, planting trees and other native plants, removing weeds, and clearing vegetation and fuel in bushland to create buffer zones that may help to reduce the speed and intensity of bushfires.
"I'd like to highlight two individuals for their unique contribution to the City of Wollongong. The first is Cathy Carr who first got involved in the FiReady program back in 2010. She eagerly set out to enlist her neighbours to work together to assist in the ongoing reduction of bushfire fuel, an important project that helps prevent and reduce the severity of bushfires. To this day, Cathy is an active member and has received this award for her commitment to the community and her genuine enthusiasm and community spirit.
"The other person I'd like to acknowledge is Merilyn House who has been a long-time active member of both Rise & Shine and Bushcare. As one of the founding members of the Helensburgh Landcare group, Merilyn has been instrumental in battling weeds in the northern suburbs as well as advocating and protecting the city's history through her work maintaining the Old Helensburgh Railway Station.
"Congratulations to our award winners! I'd also like to say thank you to all of our volunteers who have given their time to make the City of Wollongong a great place to live, work and play. We would not be able to do what we do for our community, without this support."
Many of the services Council provides rely on the support of volunteers. Watch the below video to hear from some of the great people who volunteer their time in different way.
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