McArthur announces ‘Local Hero’ to attend Scottish Parliament anniversary
Orkney’s MSP Liam McArthur has today confirmed the selection of Martin ‘Marty’ Flett to be ‘Orkney’s Local Hero’, who will join MSPs and Local Heroes from across Scotland later this year at an event in Edinburgh marking the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament.
Every Member of the Scottish Parliament has been asked to nominate one of their constituents who has made an extraordinary contribution to their community, as part of the anniversary celebrating Scottish devolution. Mr McArthur launched the search for an Orkney Local Hero last month and received a wide variety of extremely strong nominations, each highlighting the exceptional contribution made by so many to the local community in Orkney.
Marty was selected from this long list for his incredible efforts in support of a range of different charities, most notably Clan Cancer Support. Over the past decade, Marty has organised and taken part in countless fundraising events and challenges, helping raise over £100,000 for Clan Cancer in the process. He has also proved to be an invaluable help ‘behind the scenes’, setting up stalls at the agricultural shows, helping out in the Clan office, encouraging volunteers and supporting the day-to-day running of the charity.
Struck by the wide range and quality of nominations, Mr McArthur has also voiced his support for establishing a way of recognising Orkney’s Local Heroes on an annual basis. He has spoken to Leah Seator, Editor of The Orcadian about the potential for organising an annual event that would allow the contribution made by volunteers and others within the community to be more widely recognised and celebrated.
Commenting on the announcement, Orkney’s MSP said:
“Such was the quality of nominations for Orkney’s Local Hero that selecting just one candidate was exceptionally difficult.
“There is no doubt, however, that Marty Flett fits the bill perfectly given his tireless efforts raising money and supporting Clan Cancer as well as many other local charities over the years. I’m delighted he has accepted my invitation to join MSPs and local heroes from around Scotland at an event marking 25 years of the Scottish Parliament due to take place in Edinburgh later this year. He will do Orkney proud.”
“This experience has reinforced for me, however, the need to find a way of recognising and celebrating the contribution made by so many ‘local heroes’ within our community. I’m aware that existing awards and similar events provide such an opportunity in some areas, but that is not the case across the board.
“From my initial discussions with Leah Seator, it’s clear that this is something that the team at the Orcadian have been giving some thought to as well in recent years. I appreciate there would be a lot of work involved in organising something of this nature, but I’m sure there would be a lot of support within the community to help out and make this a success.
“I look forward to seeing how this develops and providing support where I can. Meantime, I congratulate Marty Flett on being selected and thank all those who took the time to nominate such an extraordinary list of local heroes. As a community, we are so fortunate to have so many people who go above and beyond on a daily basis to make Orkney the unique place that it is”.