Cookstown's Team Aspie scoops award

Cookstown community group, Team Aspie, was honoured with the title of Community Group Superstar at the final of SuperValu SuperStars for their work in supporting young people with autism and Asperger's syndrome.
By The Newsroom
Published 27th Nov 2018, 11:07 BST
Updated 8th Jan 2019, 17:13 BST
Tracy Collins from Cookstown received the Community Group SuperStar award, on behalf of Team Aspie, at a glittering awards ceremony at Titanic Hotel, which recognised over 30 inspirational individuals from across Northern Ireland. Pictured (L-R): Host Pamela Ballantine; Tracy Collins, Community Group SuperStar winner; and Brendan Gallen, Head of Marketing, Musgrave.Tracy Collins from Cookstown received the Community Group SuperStar award, on behalf of Team Aspie, at a glittering awards ceremony at Titanic Hotel, which recognised over 30 inspirational individuals from across Northern Ireland. Pictured (L-R): Host Pamela Ballantine; Tracy Collins, Community Group SuperStar winner; and Brendan Gallen, Head of Marketing, Musgrave.
Tracy Collins from Cookstown received the Community Group SuperStar award, on behalf of Team Aspie, at a glittering awards ceremony at Titanic Hotel, which recognised over 30 inspirational individuals from across Northern Ireland. Pictured (L-R): Host Pamela Ballantine; Tracy Collins, Community Group SuperStar winner; and Brendan Gallen, Head of Marketing, Musgrave.

Hundreds of nominations were received for the SuperValu SuperStars competition.

Tracy Collins, chairperson of Team Aspie, received the award on behalf of the group at the ceremony which recognised over thirty inspirational individuals from across Northern Ireland. The grand final was hosted by TV personality Pamela Ballantine who presented the awards on the night.

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Nominated by a parent of three autistic children who avail of these services, Tracy Collins and Team Aspie were recognised for their dedication to creating a supportive environment for 11-18 year olds who have been diagnosed with autism or Asperger’s sydrome.

Their aim is to create a space where these young people can create strong friendships, improve their mental and physical health and enjoy themselves through a variety of workshops and activities.

Tracy said: “I was so shocked when I heard my name being called out – it took a few seconds for it to fully register.

“I am so humbled to be the winner of the Community Group SuperStar category, but all of the finalists deserve recognition for their hard work. I’d like to thank SuperValu for giving me this platform to talk about the work that we do.

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“Team Aspie’s motto is ‘team work makes the dream work’ so this award is for all of the team.”

This year’s event, which recognised over 30 inspiring individuals, introduced a series of new categories including Young SuperStar, Fundraising SuperStar, Unsung SuperStar, Community Group SuperStar, Social Enterprise SuperStar, Action Cancer SuperStar and the overall SuperValu Action Cancer SuperStar award.

Winners from each category received awards on the night and a £250 shopping voucher for SuperValu, whilst the overall winner took home a £1,000 cash prize along with a £1,000 donation to his chosen charity.