Glen Prendergast named Citizen of the Year

Emma O’Donnell, Glen Prendergast (Rotary’s Citizen of the Year 2014), Connor Dunning (Rotary’s Young Citizen of the Year 2014), Isha Khan and Graham Rawlinson

2 More Image(s) In Gallery

Glen Prendergast, the head coach of Middleton Gymnastics Club, has been named The Rotary Club of Middleton Citizen of the Year. Connor Dunning, 10, won the Young Citizen award.

Each received a trophy and a prize of £50 presented by Isha Khan, Rochdale’s Young Person of the Year 2014, Emma O’Donnell, Youth Mayor of Oldham and Graham Rawlinson, Director or Rochdale AFC.

Glen Prendergast established the Middleton Gymnastics Club back in 1986 and has been its head coach ever since. Glen works seven days a week to help individuals grow in self esteem, improve social skills, encourage self discipline and team work.

Winner of the Rotary’s Young Citizen of the Year 2014, Connor Dunning, began to fundraise at an early age. Connor has raised funds for a variety of charities including DEBRA, PDSA and for a memorial garden for April Jones amongst others. Connor has conducted sponsored swims, and walks and has even made and sold key rings to raise funds to reach his goal of collecting funds for worthy causes. Connor regularly uses his time to find ways to help others.

Sue Furby, Chairwoman of the Youth and Vocational Projects Committee and joint organiser, said, “It’s brilliant to recognise and celebrate the achievements of Middleton youngsters and their citizens, and it was an extremely difficult decision to choose the overall winners. However, Connor has demonstrated amazing commitment to charity work using his time to find ways to raise money. Connor has raised over £600 toward various causes close to Connor’s heart. Conner has made a real difference which makes him a worthy winner. Congratulations Connor, we hope you continue to make a positive impact in Middleton.”

Lee Wolf, Chairman of the Rotary’s Community Service Committee, commented, “The Rotary Club of Middleton is proud to recognise all these individuals within our community that go the extra mile. We struggled to narrow down the nominees and it was an even tougher decision to pick an overall winner for our Citizen of the Year 2014. We selected Glen and feel he is a very worthy winner. Glen has demonstrated unselfish dedication to help individuals grow in confidence and has spent 30 years improving many lives in Middleton. We applaud Glen and hope the Middleton Gymnastics Club continues to thrive and grow.”

The nominees for Rotary’s Young Citizen of the Year 2014 included:

• Louise Woodhouse – for her work as a Junior Warden with Rochdale Borough Housing
• Sian Wildbure – a ECO team leader at Alkrington Primary School
• Juliette Waterhouse – a member of the ‘Make A Difference’ group at Cardinal Langley
• Beth Duxbury – an accomplished student and swimmer at Cardinal Langley who has organised various fundraising events
• Harry Page – a young man who attends Rochdale Sixth Form College and is a member of the National Citizenship Service

The nominees for Rotary’s Citizen of the Year 2014 included:

• Peter Hyde – a member of the Oldham Mountain Rescue team for 48 years
• Pauline McDonough – a voluntary swimming instructor for Middleton Amateur Swimming Club for over 35 years
• Jackie Ainsley – of Ainsley Signs who stepped in and helped the Rotary Club of Middleton build their Christmas Float
• Brian Brown – a member of Middleton Talking Newspapers since 1979
• Ian Tomlinson – of Grange Body Shop (GBS) who found space in his busy garage to help the Rotary Club of Middleton build their Christmas Float

A special Certificate of Merit was awarded on the night to young Abigail Matthews who helped raise over £200 for the Rotary Club of Middleton’s Water Catchment Project in Kenya.

The ceremony, organised by the Youth and Vocational and Community Service Committees, took place at St Anne’s Academy on 19 June 2014.

Nominations were received by the Rotary Club of Middleton throughout the year and were whittled down to an elite selection of twelve very worthy nominees. These twelve nominees were recognised for their outstanding contribution to the town of Middleton and were awarded certificates by members of the Rotary Club of Middleton, by Emma O’Donnell and by Graham Rawlinson.