Rotary Club of Londonderry

Update April 2011 - Exceptional young citizens win prestigious award

The achievements of young people are being celebrated as the winners of the Rotary International in Great Britain & Ireland (RIBI) Young Citizen Awards are revealed.

RIBI Young Citizen is a project organised every year by Rotary, in association with the BBC News Channel, to celebrate the positive citizenship and vital responsibilities assumed by many young people.

Clitheroe Youth Forum in Lancashire took on a mission to create a Roll of Honour for local people who fell in WWII. They even managed to obtain medals for the survivors who had been missed out by the Ministry of Defence. The forum is made up of youngsters who were looking for something constructive to do or were at risk of heading to jail and live a life of crime. The group formed in 1998 thanks to a chance encounter with the founder who spotted a need for such a forum to turn young lives around in the Ribble Valley area. Rotary Club of Ribblesdale is sponsoring the youngsters. Watch their story unfold in this special BBC News feature.

17 year old Studheart 'Sumo' Charles from Harrow, London, was nominated by Rotary Club of Edgware and Stanmore. A truant and on his way to being a career criminal, Sumo's life turned around with the birth of his son and getting involved with mentoring. As well as transforming his own life, he has inspired other youngsters to regain control and make positive choices.

Joe Keir is no ordinary 17 year old. The teen from Bedfordshire started and still runs a youth cafe. He is also involved with the Youth Parliament, plans to open two more cafes and works with the local Beaver group. Joe is also a keen environmentalist and is going to Borneo on a conservation mission. He has been nominated by the Rotary Club of Biggleswade Ivel .

Holly Watson launched a determined campaign to rid Suffolk of knife crime after her brother, Lewis, was fatally stabbed. By working with the local constabulary, speaking on BBC radio, approaching schools, launching a website and fronting an advertising campaign, Holly has made sure that young people throughout the area understand why knife crime has to end. Holly has been nominated by the Rotary Club of Sudbury Talbot. View the BBC News Channel feature about Holly and her hard work here.

For 19 year old Ceri Cockram from Gloucestershire, a gap year turned into a lifetime commitment. Ceri became involved with Maltiti First Steps which helps young girls and women to receive education and vocational training in Ghana. She has raised £20,000 and frequently goes back to the villages to offer more help. The Rotary Club of Dursley has nominated her.

A special posthumous award is being given to Stephen Young's family from Kent. Stephen was a dynamic youngster with apassion for mountain climbing and helping his local community. A 100 day camping challenge turned into 365 days under canvas, raising over ten thousand of pounds for Demelza House Hospice. Stephen sadly lost his life during a hiking expedition in Scotland last year. His nomination is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Maidstone Riverside.

The winners are being brought to Dublin for the RIBI Conference where they will receive a trophy, a cash donation of £500 to their project and a visit to the BBC News studios as well as a tour of the BBC TV Centre in London. A series of programmes to celebrate five years of the awards are being broadcast at the times below and the awards will be presented live on the BBC News Channel on Saturday 16th April at 11.30am.

Saturday April 9th - 04:30, 22:30

Sunday April 10th - 01:30, 10:30, 22:30

Tuesday April 12th - 03:30

Friday April 15th - 02:30

Update 8th April 2011 - There were 67 nominations in total this year and the outcome of the 2011 RIBI Young Citizen Awards has now been announced, the following are the successful nominations who will be receiving their awards at the RIBI Conference in Dublin:

D1190 - Ribblesdale Rotary Club - Nominee: Clitheroe Youth Forum

D1130 - Edgware & Stanmore Rotary Club - Nominee: Studheart 'Sumo' Charles

D1070 - Biggleswade Ivel Rotary Club - Nominee: Joe Keir

D1080 - Sudbury Talbot Rotary Club - Nominee: Holly Watson

D1100 - Dursley Rotary Club - Nominee: Ceri Cockram

The presentations at conference will be broadcast live on BBC News in a 30 minute programme.


2011 - This year our club nominated the 9th Donegal Scouts, Muff for their work at the Romanian Orphanage.

Young Citizen Awards 2011

The achievements of young people are being celebrated with the Rotary in Great Britain and Ireland (RIBI) Young Citizen Awards for the fifth year. Young Citizen is a project conceived by RIBI in association with BBC News to celebrate the positive citizenship and vital responsibilities assumed by many young people in these islands.

Winning projects will form the basis for a mini-series of reports for television. In addition, the awardees will be featured at the RIBI Annual Conference in Dublin in April 2011, with a live awards programme on the BBC News Channel.

President Alan Rodden would be pleased to learn of any Person or Group (especially attractive projects will be those involving young people involved in helping young people) who could be considered for nomination.

Successful projects of the past have included:

• Interact Clubs in the inner city raising money to buy ingredients & then cook and serve breakfasts for fellow students, whose parents can't afford to give them proper breakfast

• Young people raising money for the Wheelchair Foundation to supply young people abroad with a wheelchair

• A young disabled person starring at sport or helping other young people

• A youth exchange student doing charitable work abroad

• Award to a school for filling a very large number of shoeboxes or similar

For further details please click here