Community champions young and old have enjoyed their moment in the spotlight after being recognised in awards celebrating the very best of their town.
Brandon’s unsung heroes have been celebrated and awarded at the Best of Brandon community awards ceremony, the second time the event has been staged.
The glittering awards evening, which was held at IES Breckland, was the culmination of the now annual event that aims to recognise those that go the extra mile for the town.
Tickets for the ceremony sold out in less than a week. Five awards were handed out in total throughout the evening which also saw live music performances from local musician Alton Wahlberg.
Brandon-based Shoestring Theatre Company also helped throughout the evening by looking after sound, lighting and voiceovers.
The Best of Brandon awards, or BoBs, were set up in 2018 as a joint venture between Brighter Brandon and Tesco Brandon. They follow on from a project set up by Tesco in 2017 as a local community hero scheme and have gone from strength to strength.
This year the five awards categories included volunteer; an individual who has gone above and beyond for their town, young volunteer; awarded to a young person under the age of 18 as of December 31, business; awarded to a business that has made a difference to our town, group; for a Brandon group that has supported the town, and lifetime achievement; for an individual who has continued to support the town over the years.
One of the organisers of the event, Terry Hawkins, said: “This was our second presentation evening since starting the awards and we’re thankful once again to all those that nominated their BoBs.
“Of course congratulations go to all of the nominees and award winners plus we would also like to thank those that helped us organise the evening.
“The response to the 2019 awards has been phenomenal. With such a large number of nominations submitted, picking the top three in each category was a real challenge for our judges.
“Keep an eye out for the 2020 nominations which will open later in the year.”
BEST OF BRANDON AWARD WINNERS
Group of the Year: St. Peter’s Church
Business of the Year: P&R Garden Supplies
Young Volunteer of the Year: Gracie Holland
Volunteer of the Year: Ali Barnes
Lifetime Achievement: Alan Norton
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