Sports Darling Downs ready to honour region’s best volunteers

Without volunteers sport would not exist across the Darling Downs which is why a leading not-for-profit organisation is eager honour their contributions at a major award night.

Toowoomba Weightlifting Club’s Bowen Stuart. who went to the Tokyo Olympics as a technical official, is short-listed for Sports Darling Downs Volunteer of the Year award. Picture: Kevin Farmer

RECOGNISING the hard work and sacrifice of volunteers is easy for Sports Darling Downs – they are after all a volunteer organisation themselves.

Established in 1999 to help regional athletes realise their sporting dreams, the not-for-profit now supports teams, organisations, officials and volunteers as well.

“They (volunteers) are absolutely critical to every sport,” Sports Darling Downs president Mick Smith said.

“The same can be said of our umpires and officials.”

“Without them sport doesn’t exist.”

Every year SDD receives hundreds of nominations for its junior and senior sports stars of the year awards, however the list of nominees for other officials, particularly volunteers, is far less extensive.

Colin Dennis (roller derby), Lauren Zeller (rugby league) and Bowen Stuart (weightlifting) are in line for SDD’s 2021 Volunteer of the Year award, while Cayleb Fidge (Aussie rules), Noah Burke (hockey/indoor hockey), Seth Hardaker (softball) and Aleisha Neumann (hockey) feature on the umpire and referee shortlist.

“Every year I’m blown away by the fact that we get so few nominations,” Smith said.

“I think what typically happens is volunteers are not going to nominate themselves, and then other people in the club or organisation think someone else will nominate them and then all of a sudden they’ve missed the deadline.

“At the same time I’m not exactly surprised – I think it’s very typical of our volunteers and other officials.

“They’re not in it for the recognition or the plaudits.

“Typically they start off as a parent whose children are involved in sport or a club, and before they know it they’re taking on more and more jobs.

“They get in, sacrifice their time and do the hard work because it needs to be done and they love their sport.”