THEY are the leading lights in our community and with their inspiration and support Beccles, Bungay, Halesworth, Loddon, Lowestoft and Southwold are much brighter places to be.

THEY are the leading lights in our community and with their inspiration and support Beccles, Bungay, Halesworth, Loddon, Lowestoft and Southwold are much brighter places to be.

The Beccles and Bungay Journal has once again teamed up with our sister paper, The Lowestoft Journal and Pleasurewood Hills to reward a host of kind, caring and selfless individuals during our fourth annual Pride in the Community Awards.

This is our chance to give thanks to the special people who make a huge impression on our lives.

The awards are being held on Tuesday, July 13, at Pleasurewood Hills, in Leisure Way, Lowestoft, in the form of a summer garden party after the closure of the park.

During the evening a delicious buffet and cool drinks will be served by the lake, followed by a spectacular free performance in the Castle Theatre of this year's show Circus and Street Arts, created especially for Pleasurewood.

The evening will end on a high with the presentation of the award winners by Lowestoft Journal editor Max Bennett and Pleasurewood Hills manager Alexis Camelin.

We are looking for modest, hard working characters who work quietly to achieve their goals and help others without ever expecting anything in return.

It could be a child who has battled a serious illness, a kind neighbour who puts your needs before their own, or perhaps your favourite teacher, who makes it worth going into school every day.

You might wish to reward your community hero; someone who has worked tirelessly on a project or a cause, an entrepreneur who is seeking to make a different, or person you consider as remarkable for all they have had to cope with in their life.

All these people show courage, compassion and good spirit and are the sorts of people we want to recognise, because they would never actively seek praise.

So it's up to you to tell us their amazing stories.

Our sponsor Pleasurewood Hills, established in the early 1980s is proud to have been part of the community for 27 years and is a key part of the region's heritage.

The park also supports many local businesses who supply a range of goods and materials. This commitment to the economy and the people that live and work in the area will provide genuine value to the awards and the community. Having won the Best Visitor Experience 2009 award at the Tourism in Suffolk awards, it only re-iterates the point of working together to continue the shared community partnerships.

Mr Camelin said: “This is our fourth year of sponsoring the Pride in the Community awards and my first year to be involved as the new general manager of Pleasurewood Hills. We are proud to be associated with such a fantastic event and it seems to be getting bigger and better every year with more and more nominations coming through from the Waveney area.

“This event belongs to you, the people of Waveney, the unsung heroes, volunteers and many more, who deserve recognition for all your hard work and commitment, sometimes over adversity.”

All shortlisted entrants will be contacted by the end of June and are invited with members of their family to the lavish awards ceremony.

To nominate someone for one of the nine categories fill in the entry form in The Journal.

Entries close on Thursday, June 10.