Local heroes set to shine

In the good old days becoming a hero was fairly straightforward.

All you had to do was pull someone from a burning house, tackle an escaping bank robber or pull an old lady from the path of a speeding car and you could sit back and wait for the medals to arrive in the mail.

And while mighty feats of daring are still guaranteed to gain a decent share of accolades, in this day and age the prerequisites for attaining hero status are a bit more thoughtful.

In 2008 the Illawarra community will recognise that sometimes it’s not the flashy things that are the most heroic – that the unassuming next-door neighbour who takes care of others might be one of the most heroic people in the entire region.

This year’s Local Hero Awards, launched last week in Wollongong, are about saying thank-you to the ordinary members of the Illawarra community who have shown they are capable of extraordinary things.

This year’s nominations for local heroes are now open, and nomination forms can be downloaded from www.i98fm.com.au.

The categories are Junior Sports Star of the Year, Senior Sports Star of the Year, Teacher of the Year, Volunteer of the Year and Local Hero of the Year.

Nominations close at 5pm on Friday, June 6.

The finalists for each category will be notified by Friday, June 20 and just a week later on Friday, June 27 the winners will be announced at an awards ceremony to be held at City Beach Function Centre in Wollongong.

Cricketing legend Steve Waugh will be one of the judges and a presenter at the ceremony, as will WIN TV personality and Wollongong local Susie Elelman and i98fm’s Marty and Erica.

Ms Elelman joined Marty, Erica and Australian Health Management CEO Michael McLeod to officially launch the awards last Friday.

Australian Health Management and i98FM are the key sponsors of the Local Hero Awards.