At a ceremony held at St John’s Hall on Tuesday 9 May, Councillors, special guests, and local community groups gathered to celebrate the achievements of local residents and elect a new Mayor and Deputy Mayor for the town.
The Brian Spiegelhalter Citizen and Young Citizen of the Year Awards were started in 2004 by the family of the late Brian Spiegelhalter, a previous Mayor of Penzance, to celebrate the work of local people and their important contributions to our Parish community.
Following a public vote last month, the winners were announced by the outgoing Mayor of Penzance, Councillor Jonathan How, and presented with engraved pewter plates kindly provided by BJ Spiegelhalter & Son.
Citizen of the Year 2023 was awarded to Terry Sampson, for his years of volunteering for the Golowan Festival and the creation of the Golowan Festival Archive.
Young Citizen of the Year 2023 was awarded to Isla Grace Walker from for her incredible bravery in the face of huge personal challenges.
This year’s Sir Humphry Davy Prize was awarded to Joe Symonds from Humphry Davy School for outstanding academic achievement in chemistry and physics.
The Mayor’s Cadets for 2023/24 were also announced: Sea Cadet 1st Class Sonny Marsden, Air Cadet Corporal Harry Jenkins, and Police Cadet Edward Willetts.
The Sea, Air and Police Cadet Crops are asked to nominate a cadet, in recognition of their special efforts and qualities, to serve as the Mayor’s Cadet for the civic year. The new cadets received their official badges of office to wear on their uniforms when attending civic functions in the coming year. The retiring cadets were also awarded certificates for their service – Sea Cadet 1st Class Seb Dash and Air Cadet Corporal Oliver Hall.
Mr Jack Dixon and Mr Mario Fonk were also made Honorary Freeman of Penzance for their decades of eminent service to the town and its community. Both were presented with hand painted scrolls and invited to sign the Roll of Honorary Freemen in the presence of the Town Mayor and Town Clerk.
And last, but by no means least, Councillor Stephen Reynolds and Councillor Will Elliott were elected as Mayor and Deputy Mayor respectively, and Mr Philip Northcott was again named as the Town Crier.
The Mayor of Penzance
Cllr Stephen Reynolds
The Deputy Mayor of Penzance
Cllr Will Elliott
The ceremonial ‘swearing in’ of the Mace Bearers also took place with Mr Simon Reed and Mr Andrew Chellew solemnly taking the oath. Mr Talan Richards was also sworn in to serve as Deputy Sergeant at Mace.
Councillor Stephen Reynolds said “It’s a great honour to have been chosen by my fellow-councillors to serve as Town Mayor for the coming year.
“In my two years as a councillor I have been struck by the awesome levels of goodwill, enterprise, commitment and local knowledge shown by the people of the Penzance parish. I’m really looking forward to working with all our local community groups, and to ensuring that local people have a strong voice – not just within our Council, but further afield as well.”
The ceremony was followed by a buffet reception at The Union Hotel for all the award winners and special guests.
