It was an evening of music, poetry, speeches, and good food at the Rotary Club of Stratford’s sixth Annual East London Community Awards gala night. Kudos to the event sponsors, Westfield Stratford City and the Noon Centre for Equality and Diversity at the University of East London. The evening certainly lived up to all that Rotarians say they are: people of action, driven by a desire to create opportunities, strengthen communities, and solve the tough challenges that affect people worldwide, and the awards categories certainly reflected this. 

A notable aspect of the award categories is that they reflected real community needs: Peace and Conflict Resolution, Health and Well-Being, Arts and Culture, Developing Human Capital, Community Cohesion, Business/Community Partnership, Women’s Empowerment, Sports Development, Empowering Young People, Tackling Homelessness, Social Enterprise, and improving mental Health. There was also an award for Young Community Hero of the Year and Community Group of the Year. 

Distinguished VIPs on the evening included Sir Stephen Timms, the Labour Member of Parliament for Eastham since 1994, Sarah Ruiz, the Deputy Major of the London Borough of Newham, and Fatima Annan Diab, Dean of the Royal Docks School of Business and Law, University of East London. 

But those who really made the evening a great one were the many award nominees. The evening shone bright with their presence, and the world seemed a better place. So, to every nominee present, here’s a big thank you for making Newham a much better place to live. To borrow a line from the Bible, “You are the salt of the earth.”

One more thing: since it is said that a picture speaks louder than a thousand words, here are some photos from the event showing Newham in all its beautiful diversity. The images are provided courtesy of the Rotary Club of Stratford.

Rotary Gala Night Photo Gallery