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Recent recipients

2023 Local Hero Awards winners

Strengthening Community

• Winner: Sebastian Cassie
• Commendation: Anthia Kollaras

Community Volunteer 

• Winner: William Harrigan
• Commendation: Adam Nezval

Working Together

• Winner: Research Teams at the Waverley Historical Society and Waverley Historical Society (Jim Degenhardt, Greg Ross, Peter Armstrong, Alice Paul, Gwen Bullivant, Lyn Smith, Audrey McCallum and Brian Ellison)
• Commendation: The P2F Wise (Kay Brooks, Barbara Schaffer, Kerrie Lee, Alma Douglas, Kit Shepherd and Louise Murray)

Community Life

• Winner: Elisabeth Keys
• Commendation: Ingrid Studholme

Second Nature Champion

• Winner: Langlee Lane Community Garden (Sandra Fox, Anna Torok, Sue Lowe, Vanessa Power and Pawan Harpsla)
• Commendation: Louise Murray

Young Local Hero

• Winner: Dallas Pumpa-Jones
• Commendation: Wise Youth (Amelie Medniuk, Janey Martin, Kim Dalhke, Mattia Bray, Molly Owen, Olivia Stein, Rosa Hayward and Sylvia Waugh)

Outstanding Community Contribution

Winner: Waverley Woollahra SES

2023 Best of the Best Award winners

Brenda Miley is a proud Bondi local and changemaker, as well as an award-winning leader in the surf school and tourism industries. Having risen through the ranks of the male dominated local surf clubs, Brenda wanted to carve a safe space for female surfers and change the way girls experienced surfing, and the idea of a business teaching women how to surf was born. In 1995, Brenda launched Let's Go Surfing – an organisation that now employs more than 100 staff. In 1999, still looking to expand the female presence in the surfing community and in surf competitions, she formed the Bondi Girls Surfriders Club, which continues to welcome hundreds of girls and women of all ages, abilities and backgrounds every year and plays host to monthly surf competitions.

Waverley Council's Local Hero in 2019, Peter Quartly has spent over 60 seasons patrolling with Bondi Surf Bathers Life Saving Club. He has been club president of the Bondi Amateur Swimming Club 13 times, and an examiner and assessor for more than 40 years at Surf Life Saving Sydney. Peter helped form the North Bondi Precinct in 1987 (he remains a Chairman), was a founding member of the Friends of Waverley Library over 30 years ago, and has been a member of the environmental group Sydney Water for over 20 years. Peter has also sat on Council and advisory boards for the North Bondi Methodist and Uniting Church.

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