Businessman honoured by Prince's Trust
Nov 28 2008 by Katy Simpson, Evening Chronicle
Ed Lawson, Craig Smith, Joshua Davies
HE has been crowned a king among Princes.
Businessman Ed Lawson, of Rowlands Gill, has been named Volunteer of the Year by the Princes Trust for his dedication to helping disadvantaged young people follow their dreams.
The prize, sponsored by the Chronicle, was presented to Ed by Newcastle United legend Bob Moncur at a glitzy awards ceremony last night at the Hilton in Gateshead.
Among VIP guests were actor Tim Healy, Olympic swimmer Chris Cook, and Big Brother winner Anthony Hutton. They were celebrating the success of 30 young people and volunteers from the North East who were shortlisted for awards at the Prince’s Trust’s annual Celebrate Success ceremony.
Ed, 65, was one of nine winners. He has been a mentor for the Trust since 2002 and is currently supporting three young people to set up businesses.
Auf Wiedersehen Pet’s Tim Healy said:"I’m a big believer in highlighting the achievements and community spirit of our younger generations. Their success stories will hopefully inspire other youngsters."
Craig and Lisa Kennedy of Killingworth, took the Enterprise Award. Craig, 28, set up The Printed Bag Shop 18 months ago after he and Lisa were made redundant" with a baby on the way.
Thanks to a loan from the Prince’s Trust, they started printing environmentally friendly bags and soon attracted major clients. Next year the firm expects to turn over £250,000.
Joshua Davies, 17, of Norham Community Technology College in North Shields, was awarded the Educational Achiever of the Year award.
Former Toon skipper Bob Moncur paid tribute to all volunteers who help young people achieve their goals.
He said:"It’s very humbling to come to an award ceremony and meet ‘salt of the earth’ people like Ed, the kind of people who get up in the morning and look forward to changing young lives.
"I believe that every professional footballer has been helped somewhere along the line by a volunteer who has given up their time for nothing.
"Certainly in my case, several volunteers helped me along the road to success. It’s important that people like Ed are recognised for their efforts."
Ed said:"For me, this is something I’ve done my whole life. Mentoring for me didn’t start in 2002, it started 40 years ago and I have since worked with engineers, managers, supervisors" the lot.
"Yet when I see a reaction in a young person’s eyes that you are getting through, it reminds me that this is what I enjoy most. This is what it’s all about for me."
http://tinyurl.com/tpbs-november-news
Date Written: Sat, Nov 1st 2008
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