2010 SOSUNS Volunteers and Coaches Recognised
August 11, 2010 by deb
A fantastic night was enjoyed by Special Olympics Sydney Upper North Shore (SOSUNS) volunteers, coaches and supporters at the Avondale Golf Club recently. Great music from the Barker School Jazz Band, lovely food and drinks supplied by Avondale and inspirational company from the people who contribute to the success of SOSUNS contributed to an enjoyable evening where coaches and volunteers could be thanked in person.
Athlete of the year Shaun congratulates senior volunteer winner Brett
SOSUNS athletes are privileged to have dedicated volunteers and coaches who each week give their time to coach athletes in their chosen sport, coordinate the sports, umpire, fundraise, organise carnivals and sit on committees. From parents to siblings and just people from the general public who hear about SOSUNS and come along to help out, they are all valuable and appreciated.
Joint senior volunteer winner Gavin
Lucy Dumitrescu kept everyone spellbound with a heartfelt and very funny speech recounting her experiences as a SOSUNS volunteer and athlete. Lucy eloquently described how rewarding it is to be a SOSUNS schools sports program volunteer and then in her role as an athlete thanked the coaches and volunteers for their great work.
Junior volunteer winner Brandon with brother James
As Lucy explained, athletes are appreciative not only of the time and coaching that they receive but also of the fact that coaches and volunteers become genuine friends.
The Recognition Evening was also an opportunity to announce the 2010 Senior and Junior Volunteers of the Year and the 2010 Athlete of the Year. Numerous nominations were received this year and so for the first time, SOSUNS also awarded commendations in these categories along with Community Service Awards.
Mel awards athlete commendations to Michael and Alyssa
Community service award winners Karen and Anthea
Awards for 2010 were as follows:
Athlete leader Lucy, Volunteer Coordinator Graham and Deputy Chairman Peter
Junior Volunteer of the Year - Brandon Lawrence
Athlete of the Year - Shaun Bender
Community Service Awards - Karen Bender, Anthea Karseboom
What a great night! Elissa and Deb worked very hard as usual putting it all together. Talk about dumbfounded. How Graham kept this such a secret from me still astounds me! I had no idea! I feel the volunteers that were chosen were what volunteers are and do. Giving of their time freely even though it cuts into their own lives. They are truly very special people and it shows when the athletes are with them. The athletes think the world of these two. Wish there were more like them out there. Wonder if we could clone them?
Karen Bender