YorkMix Hero Awards – Meet the finalists for the Volunteer of the Year award

Time to meet some more amazing people – as we reveal our finalists for the Volunteer of the Year award.

We wanted to hear nominations for volunteers who have gone above and beyond over the past 18 months.

But we still need your help! Head over to the YorkMix Hero Awards page to vote in our People’s Choice Award – which shortlisted organisation do you think deserves to be recognised?

Keep reading to meet our fantastic finalists…

The Volunteer of the Year award is sponsored by Kings Carpets & Flooring.

The Hero Awards ceremony will take place at the Principal York on Friday 8 October.

With thanks to our awards supporters!

Meet the finalists…

Kym Brown

Kym set up and ran Hoping Street Kitchen – a group who provides food and clothing for York’s homeless community every week.

Unfortunately the service had to be stopped during lockdown – but that didn’t stop Kym.

She created hampers of hot cooked food and clothing to be delivered to York’s homeless and for those in need – in-between her day job as an NHS nurse.

One person who nominated Kym said, “For Kym this is just who she is and she never wants any acknowledgment.

“A truly amazing person.”

Helen El Gmati

Helen volunteers with the York Mosque Scouts and dedicates her time both in the York Mosque community and the scouts.

The scouts group is valuable for the children who attend.

Someone who nominated Helen said, “Helen is amazing with the scouts children.

“She always put time and effort into planning the classes for the children.

“Whilst in lockdown Helen did so many fun activities online through Zoom and gave packages out to parents for resources.”

Jordan Cook

Jordan runs the Rufforth Football Club for under 9’s.

Many of the children’s confidence has skyrocketed from being on his team.

Jordan teaches his team to look after each other even if they aren’t the best players, as well as the importance of being considerate to the team they are playing.

And their hard work paid off – the team won a tournament at Flamingo Land and came second at an RI tournament.

One person who nominated Jordan said, “It’s not just the winning that’s important, it’s the way the children have grown in confidence and are always smiling.

“Jordan is constantly looking for ways to make sure the kids get the best out of the team.”

Congratulations to all of our finalists!

The winner of the Volunteer of the Year award will be revealed in our Hero Awards ceremony at the Principal York on 8th October.

A big thank you to all our awards sponsors.