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www.bradleystokejournal.co.uk
t: 01454 300 400
July/August 2018
News Stars of the Stokes Awards for 2018
T Contact Us Editor: Stephen Horton info@bradleystokejournal.co.uk 01454 300 400 83 Snowberry Close Bradley Stoke Bristol BS32 8GB
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About the Bradley Stoke Journal The Bradley Stoke Journal website and magazine are published by North Bristol Press, a trading name of Snowberry Media Ltd; company number 8451178 (registered in England and Wales); registered office: 7 Chelford Grove, Stoke Lodge, Bristol BS34 6DD. Our other publications include the Patchway Journal website, the Stoke Gifford Journal website and the Filton Journal website. North Bristol Press is independent of any other media company or network operating in the Bristol area. We accept no responsibility for anything stated by advertisers, who are themselves responsible for complying with all relevant legislation. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the editor or article author. © North Bristol Press 2018. Content published in our magazines or on our websites may not be reproduced in any form without our express written permission.
he annual Stars of the Stokes awards, hosted by actor Shaun Williamson, took place on Friday 15th June at the Aztec Hotel & Spa. The sparkling red-carpet event, now in its third year, recognises and rewards the achievements of members of our local community who either go out of their way to help others, or who face daily challenges of their own. Nominations are invited from people living in the Almondsbury, Bradley Stoke, Patchway, Stoke Lodge, Little Stoke, Stoke Gifford, Frampton Cotterell and Winterbourne areas for one of eight categories including: Coach of the Year, Achievement Against the Odds, Star Teacher, Champion Carer, Parent/Guardian in a Million, Unsung Hero, Pre-School Carer and The Bailey Cooper Award for Young Heroes. Andy Wynn, manager of the Willow Brook Centre, who created and managed the event said:
“We received some truly fantastic nominations so choosing a winner for each category wasn’t easy. It’s humbling to know that we have such brilliant, selfless people in our local community, who prove themselves to be wholly deserving of the recognition bestowed by these awards.” Last year, nine-year-old Bailey Cooper won the Achievement Against the Odds award for his bravery and spirit in battling nonHodgkin lymphoma. Sadly, Bailey died on Christmas Eve and so a new category was created in his honour this year and his parents, Rachel and Lee, very proudly presented this award. The event was supported by the Bradley Stoke Journal, Aztec Hotel & Spa, First Bus, Tesco Extra, Olympus Academy Trust, Carisway Facilities Support, Honeyfield Property Services and DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol North. ● For more information, visit www.starsofthestokes.co.uk
Reflections on the 2018 Awards, by Andy Wynn of the Willow Brook Centre A couple of days before the Stars of the Stokes Awards night, I was speaking with a colleague, reflecting on the 2018 nominees and those from previous years. We realised that we have had more than 300 nominations over the three years that we have run the awards. Three hundred people who inspire others, who make a difference in their community and who make people’s lives better on a daily basis. We have read so many stories of inspiring teachers, parents who have battled against obstacles and young people who inspire the adults who know them. It is always easy for us to focus on the problems with our society, on the issues that worry us or the repetitively negative news cycle. The thing is, it’s bad news that is ‘interesting’, that we remember, that we talk about in the playground and in the staff room. It is in this context that my colleagues and I, with the support of our sponsors, are so proud of the success that Stars of the Stokes has become. We have had three years of recognising those people in our community who deserve recognition and who often fly under the radar. The people who we have read about, met and rewarded are generally people who play down what they do, who think to themselves “I am nothing special”. The rest of us know that they are wrong; these are the heroes of our community, they are the people who make our community work and who make a difference to people’s lives. We are forever grateful to the people who recognise that these people are special and have therefore taken the time to nominate them for Stars of the Stokes. Once again, we had a wonderful time with our community heroes on 15th June, a real mix of people mingling and enjoying the celebration of each other’s achievements.
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