Community Citizen of the Year Awards- 2022 Winners

Each Australia Day, the Community Citizen of the Year Awards give local governments around the state the opportunity to acknowledge the contribution and celebrate community engagement of people within the community. Every year, the unsung heroes of our community are nominated by their co-workers, friends, family and fellow community members for the hard work and dedication they show to make Northam a better place to live, work and raise a family.

The awards are broken into four categories celebrating not only the selected Community Citizen of the Year, but also a selected senior community member, youth, and a group. This year, we received 16 nominees across the four categories:

• Lisa Biglin

• Guy Mead

• Andrae Moore

• Duncan Middlemass

• Denis Beresford

• William Dick Jr

• Jo Drayton

• Sue Turner

• Andrew Vallance

• Amanda Kickett

• Stryka Fight Team

• Caitlyn Gray

• Northam Youth in Emergency Services Cadet Unit

• Chadd Hunt

• Nicole Hampton

• Brendon Rutter

The winners of these awards were selected by Council, and announced at the ceremony held at Bilya Koort Boodja on Australia Day.

• Community Citizen of the Year - Guy Mead

Following a long military career, Guy established the Stryka Fight Team to engage local young people to make the most of their talents, and to show compassion for others while being active members of the community. Guy was nominated because of the immeasurable difference he makes to the lives of local youth.

• Community Citizen of the year (Senior) - Denis Beresford

Denis was nominated because despite his lifetime of serving his community and many anonymous donations to groups around Northam, he is a “quiet achiever” who “shies away from public recognition”. Denis has been a Justice of the Peace for over 30 years, and served for 30 years on both Town of Northam and Shire of Northam Councils.

• Community Citizen of the year (Youth) - Caitlyn Gray

Caitlin is actively involved in her local fire brigade, many fundraising efforts, her local primary school & choir. She has been involved in the bush ranger cadets and is passionate about conserving the local environment.

• Active Citizenship (Group or Event) - Northam Youth in Emergency Services Cadet Unit

The Northam Youth in Emergency Services Cadets Unit program aims to educate young people on the importance of our amazing volunteers, and teach them some life skills that will support them as they develop into the next generation of community leaders. The unit was established in October 2020, and has grown in popularity since, due to their community service efforts.

The Community Citizen of the Year Awards are run by the Australia Day Council and Auspire.