Lily Donald and Tom Close have been recognised as shining examples of how people can support their community.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Both were this week presented with Shine On Awards by the Rotary Club of Deniliquin.
The awards are held annually across Australia, and allow Rotary to recognise exceptional service to others by people with disabilities.
Lily is from Deniliquin and Tom is from Finley, and both are associated with Kurrajong here in Deniliquin.
Their awards were presented at the organisation’s Napier St centre on Wednesday, where morning tea was organised by the Kurrajong team.
Given the honour of presenting this year’s winners with their certificates was Rotarian and previous Shine On Awards recipient David McPherson.
It was particularly special for Mr McPherson because of his involvement as a past board member of Yallambee, which merged with Kurrajong.
Mr McPherson was happy to share more details of why Lily and Tom were both honoured this year.
“Lily is in Year 11 at school, and through the Kurrajong Disability Services and Support organisation in Deniliquin, she has done volunteer work once a week delivering flowers from the local florist,” he said.
“Working there has given Lily the opportunity to gain confidence and new skills.
“The florist showed Lily how to do the banking, and the bank staff were very supportive of her.
“Lily is now in a paid role at Barber + Threadz, significantly contributing to the local business.”
Mr McPherson said Lily, through her love of animals, has become known for her gentle nature and willingness to learn new skills and take pride in her achievements.
“Lily loves animals and has had the opportunity to learn to ride ponies through Riding for the Disabled.
“Now Lily is able to train ponies, and she has gone on to win many ribbons riding in regional shows for RDA.
“As well as horses, Lily has shown skills in breeding prize chickens and has exhibited them at shows and won many ribbons.”
Tom has been honoured for his work with Kurrajong, and through volunteer roles.
“Tom lives in Finley with his family and is part of the Kurrajong community, which services the Riverina Murray Region.
“He volunteers for the Meals on Wheels program, delivering meals to elderly people.
“Several Kurrajong clients with disabilities make biscuits at home under the label ‘Divine Treats’ to earn some income.
“For ten years, Tom has been the person who goes out and sells them to members of the community.
“Tom is always described as being well-mannered and polite, and people in Finley and Tocumwal enjoy having a chat with him while he is doing ‘the biscuit run’.”
Deniliquin Rotarian and immediate past president George Maddison congratulated both Lily and Tom on their roles in the community.
“Awards of this nature don’t come around very often, and everyone could agree that both Lily and Tom have done exceptionally well to be recognised with their awards,” he said.
11°C