DENISE Robertson was "shaking" to find out she was crowned the Local Legend of The Year.
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Volunteer of the Year (65+) Ms Robertson was recognised for spending 14 years volunteering at Ronald McDonald House helping to support families with a sick or injured child.
Her grandson spent time at John Hunter Hospital with diabetes many years ago, and Ms Robertson said at the time, if a Ronald McDonald house was built in Tamworth - she'd work at it.
She started on the third day of operations in the city.
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The highlight of her work is supporting parents.
"Reassuring them that everything will be fine once their babies have grown up, and their children have got better," she said.
Jennifer Harnett is a self-described 'mother-hen'.
The life member of NSW Rural Fire Service was awarded the Volunteer of the Year Award (25 - 64) for serving as the call out officer for two decades.
"All my members, when I send them out, I always stay up until I know they're all back in safely," she said.
"They care about me, but I care about them more, I always say."
And the winners are:
Volunteer of the Year Award (Adult, 25 - 64 years): Jennifer Harnett - for her contribution to the New South Wales Rural Fire Brigade in the Tamworth district as the Call Out Officer. Jennifer has been performing this role for 20 years.
Volunteer of the Year Award (Adult, 65+ years): Denise Robertson - for the 3000+ hours she has spent volunteering at Ronald McDonald House over the past 14 years, helping to support New England North West families with a sick or injured child.
Access Award (Business or Community): Homestead Coffee - for their work in making the premises accessible for all with a new sliding door and access ramp.
Access Award (Individual): Amanda Sheridan - for her work improving access to education for students with physical and cognitive learning difficulties at St Edward's Primary School, South Tamworth.
Community Inclusion Award (Community and/or Individual): Tamworth Pride Inc. - for their promotion of inclusivity and acceptance of people with diverse sexual orientations and / or gender identities in the Tamworth community.
Excellence in Performing Arts Award (Community and/or Individual): Lane Pittman - for his great success as a musician, becoming a finalist on The Voice and more recently as an opening act for Luke Combs on his tour of Australia and New Zealand.
Excellence in Visual Arts Award (Community and/or Individual): Friends of the Gallery - for their consistent support of the Tamworth Textile Triennial that showcases the best of textile art from across the country every three years.
Local Legend of the Year: Denise Robertson - selected as her many years volunteering at Ronald McDonald House best reflected the focus of the awards, which is to recognise 'the outstanding contributions of individuals and organisations making our region a better place to live'.
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