Campbell Town IGA owner Rob Thomas has won the Community Award at the 2018 IGA Awards of Excellence.
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Mr Thomas, who is also the Northern Midlands SES Unit Manager and a Tasmania Fire Service volunteer, was chosen as the winner at a ceremony last month.
Mr Thomas was given the award for his work with the SES and TFS, in conjunction with his community-minded initiatives at IGA.
“I enjoy helping people – I get a kick out of it,” Mr Thomas said.
“We all need help at some stage and it’s good to have someone there for you.”
Mr Thomas moved to Campbell Town, from Launceston, and bought the IGA with his wife Debbie 15 years ago.
He said supermarkets were an integral part of country towns and that he tries to make his IGA as community-minded as possible.
“The IGA is the cornerstone of the town,” he said.
“It’s a place where everyone meets and everyone has a chat.
“Supermarkets like this are really important in smaller towns.
“Most of us are very community minded.”
Mr Thomas said he had made a lot of changes to the store since first buying it.
The store delivers groceries to the elderly, has vastly improved facilities and functions as the town’s post office.
“We have made a lot of changes here – from the front door to the back door,” he said.
“There’s been a lot done and it’s evolving all the time.”
His volunteer work with the local emergency services was a part of an effort to help the Campbell Town residents after first moving to town.
“I didn’t realise that all the emergency services out here were volunteer-based,” he said.
“It just so happened that a volunteer walked into the store from the SES and told me to come down.
“I’ve been there ever since.”
The Tasmanian IGA Excellence Awards took place in Adelaide and saw 140 people attend the ceremony.
Twenty-one awards were handed out to winners on the evening.