- JEP launches major new awards celebrating our Island community
- Islanders being asked to nominate potential winners in 12 different categories
- Awards for grandparents, neighbours and teachers, among other categories
- Gallery below of the kind of people who make Jersey so special
THE Jersey Evening Post is today launching its Pride of Jersey awards to recognise and honour all aspects of community life in the Island.
Celebrating everyone from grandparents and neighbours to community champions and teachers, the awards’ aim is to mark some of the wonderful day-to-day activities and achievements of Islanders who help make Jersey such a special place to live.
And in order to keep the community at the heart of the awards, Islanders will be asked to nominate potential winners and be involved in the voting and judging, via the newspaper and online.
The categories for the awards, which are the centrepiece of the JEP’s year-long 125th anniversary celebrations, are:
- Ambassador of the Year
- Volunteer/Fundraiser of the Year
- Grandparent(s) of the Year
- Community Champion(s) of the Year
- Environmentalist(s) of the Year
- Jersey Angel of the Year
- Teacher of the Year
- Unsung Sporting Hero of the Year
- Customer Service Employee of the Year
- Young Star of the Year
- Neighbour of the Year
- and Inspirational Leader of the Year.
The JEP has also teamed up with an exclusive group of local businesses who have each become official partners for the 12 different categories.
Each has chosen an award which is relevant to them and each will be putting up a prize worth £1,000 for their chosen winners.
Jersey Evening Post managing director Paul Carter said: ‘Like most people heading towards a milestone birthday or anniversary you tend to get reflective and take stock.
‘At the JEP this was no different for us when considering our 125th Anniversary.
‘We had long held an ambition to create a significant community event, something that celebrated Jersey in a way that would involve all Islanders who wanted to participate, and from this ambition the Pride of Jersey was forged.
‘Working with key local businesses the JEP has created a campaign that will shine a spotlight on the people and organisations that bind our community together.
‘The volunteers, the good neighbours the helping hands and those who step up when they are needed.
‘It is with immense pride that we are in a position at the Jersey Evening Post to have the prominence, reach and influence to bring all of this together and then ask Islanders to nominate and vote for their local heroes.
‘Over the coming weeks we will feature the nominees and their stories and promote involvement in this exciting event which will culminate in an awards’ ceremony for the nominees and their families.
‘Pride of Jersey might have its origins in our 125th anniversary programme but we are firmly committed to making this an annual event and look forward to your contribution, so get nominating and get voting, this is Jersey’s first people-powered awards and you will find details in the paper and online on how you can get involved.’
Deputy editor Carl Walker, who is organising the awards, said: ‘The key for us throughout this project – and looking ahead as it establishes itself as a major annual event on the Jersey calendar – is to keep the community at the heart of the whole process.
‘That is why the entire Island community is being invited to nominate people – either via the newspaper or our website – and it is the community that will help us judge who the most deserving Islanders are.
‘This will make our awards a true celebration of Island life.’
Speaking about the awards ceremony itself, Mr Walker added: ‘We are in the final stages of negotiations with the owners of a very special location indeed.
‘The JEP has an unrivalled contacts book and we have used that to try to secure a location that many Islanders will have never visited before.
‘For us, there are already enough black-tie formal awards evenings and it is time to break that mould and do something very different.’
Over the next few weeks, the JEP will be featuring the 12 different categories, give details of how to nominate people, and also speak to the sponsors about their involvement and what they will be looking for in the eventual winners.
TODAY we begin a search for the Islanders who make our community so special.
There are many things which contribute to make Jersey such a wonderful place to call home, from the fabulous beaches and cliff-path walks to our safe and healthy environment. They all play their part.
But above all, it is the amazing people in our community who are responsible for making this small rock, measuring just nine miles by five, stand out as such a wonderful place to live.
And that is why, as the JEP celebrates its 125th anniversary, we feel it is time to honour Islanders who make a difference, many of whom devote hours every day to make this a better place.
Often the achievements of these community heroes go unrecognised, their efforts beneath the radar of most.
Being part of that community means that the Jersey Evening Post and, more importantly, its readers, are best placed to find and honour these selfless Islanders.
It is our readers who will nominate worthy individuals and it is our readers who will be the judging panel, making the Pride of Jersey Awards unlike any others.
From grandparents and neighbours to community champions and teachers, we want to celebrate all aspects of life in the Island.
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be featuring each of our 12 categories in detail, speaking to 12 local businesses who have teamed up with us to become our awards’ partners and, most importantly, explaining how people can start voting.
These awards will become an annual celebration of those who bind our community together and we are extremely proud to be in a position, after tewelve-and-a-half decades of serving this Island, to be launching the Pride of Jersey Awards.
