Wanaka locals earn St John awards
02 July 2018, 1:21 AM
Penny and John Wilson accept the award for their support of St John from Ian Rae, a Knight of the Order of St John.
In a simple ceremony at St John Wanaka yesterday (March 20), an award for conspicuous and exceptional services rendered to St John was bestowed on a Wanaka couple, and two St John Wanaka youth cadets also received recognition for their efforts.
Penny and John Wilson received a Priory Vote of Thanks (PVOT) for their remarkable fundraising efforts for St John Wanaka over the last decade. During that time, Penny and John not only sourced over half the auction items and donations for the annual Wanaka Charity Golf Tournament which raised in excess of $80,000 for St John Wanaka, they also were actively engaged in running the raffles over the three days of each tournament.
A Knight of the Order of St John, Ian Rae, presented the citation to the Wilsons. Formerly based in Wanaka, he said organisations in Wanaka had received a coveted PVOT in the past but this was the first occasion in this district it had been awarded to individuals. A PVOT has to be approved by the supreme governing body of the Order of St John in New Zealand and the citation is signed by New Zealand’s Governor General.
John said he and Penny were humbled by the honour of the award. "I think we’re blessed in Wanaka with a fantastic community spirit,” he said. "We’re but a small cog in the wheel. We encouraged private individuals and businesses to donate and without their generosity we wouldn’t have been able to raise the funds.”
A Grand Prior Badge and Certificate was also awarded to St John Wanaka youth cadet Eva Wilson (15), and youth cadet Maddi Frazer (14) received a community service certificate representing 500 hours of public service.
The Grand Prior Award, presented in the form of a badge, is the highest youth award that can be gained within St John Youth. It takes several years for the cadets to obtain the 12 gold level proficiency badges required to achieve the award. The skills Eva learned included first aid, communications, community awareness, civil defence, leadership and child care.
Eva said she was proud of what she had accomplished and she would encourage others to follow in her footsteps.
Maddi Frazer, who joined St John Wanaka nine years ago, said when she started her community service to gain her certificate she "never thought I’d get to 500 hours”. Now she’s well on her way to her next goal of 800 hours of service to the community.
St John district youth manager Felicity McCrone drove up from Invercargill to witness the badge and certificates being awarded. "We’re really proud of the accomplishments of our young ladies in Wanaka. They’ve really put the effort in, particularly their hours of community service where they’ve given back time to the benefit of all of Wanaka,” she said.
PHOTOS: Wanaka App
