Support Pride of NZ awards, urges Bay hero

Wade Kelly. Photo / Glenn Taylor

Hawke's Bay hero Wade Kelly says Kiwis should get behind the Pride of New Zealand Awards again this year.

Mr Kelly, originally from Hastings, saved the lives of four people who got caught in a dangerous rip at Waimarama Beach in 2013.

His deeds during the 45-minute rescue in 2013 earned the 22-year-old the national Pride of New Zealand Bravery and Heroism Award.

Now based in Victoria, Australia, as a physiotherapist, Mr Wade told Hawke's Bay Today not much had changed since he received the award.

"I still love getting out for a surf whenever I can, and if the same situation were to occur tomorrow I wouldn't hesitate to jump in again."

He said receiving the award had been a "great opportunity".

"Receiving the award for me was very humbling and allowed me to really reflect on what had happened, because it all seemed very surreal until that point. It was also a great opportunity to hear about all the other great stories from around New Zealand," he said.

Hawke's Bay had a good showing in last year's inaugural awards, which aim to find and recognise local heroes across six categories.

Mahia environmentalist Katherine Mato won the national Environmental Award for her work with the Whangawehi Catchment Management Group.

Nominations opened yesterday and close on June 14, and regional award ceremonies will take place in August, followed by the national awards ceremony in September. The awards will be supported by major sponsors TSB Bank, along with NZME.'s New Zealand Herald, Hawke's Bay Today and radio station The Hits. For the first time, Yealands Wines is an official event partner.

How to nominate
• From now until June 14, visit prideofnzawards.co.nz and complete a nomination form for one of the six categories.
• New Zealanders of any age are eligible to be nominated, with no age restriction. The awards can also be found on Facebook - PrideOfNZAwards - and Twitter - @PrideOfNZ - with people encouraged to tweet using #prideofnz and #prideofnzawards