December Volunteer of the Month

Cerrie Smith is involved in Club, League and Management roles within Netball in North West Wales. She has been described as having an all-round pool of knowledge and amazing passion for Netball. Due to her multi-faceted commitments and giving her all in everything she does, Cerrie is our December Volunteer of the Month!

Cerrie is a player, Captain of Colwyn Swifts, helper and general volunteer for Colwyn Netball Club. A caring member of the club for over six years, Cerrie works incredibly hard in and out of training to better netball in the North West, looking after every member of the club and representing them with pride. A netball player herself for over 30 years, she has become an influential figure within the club who umpires every single game, attends games to show support, offer feedback to develop players and share her love of the game, and leads on social media for her team over the weekends. Colwyn Netball Club committee said:

“Cerrie is a true asset to our Netball Club here at Colwyn Bay. She dedicates so much of her time to ensuring our players feel welcome, she captains and mentors our third team which is in a competitive league where our younger members of the club play. She also has committed to umpiring in the Bangor junior league on a Saturday which allows us as a club to enter in our u12s and u14s. Cerrie for years has been a quietly committed member of our netball club, she very much deserves recognition for all she does for netball in Wales.” – Worded by Catherine Goodson

Jemma Milburn, player at Colwyn Netball Club, wrote:

“Cerrie was the reason I fell entirely in love with netball. She introduced me to a club I now consider my home and has been an extremely close friend ever since. With her wealth of experience as a player, umpire and mentor she is a phenomenal member to have within our community and she is extremely valued wherever she sets foot.”

As well as supporting at club level, Cerrie is also League Treasurer of North West Wales Netball League and has been a part of the committee for over twenty years, holding a lot of pride for the league. Every week she is problem solving, making sure venues are booked, and ensuring every venue is safe for all the players taking part. She is an integral part of the league, and it’s noted the league could simply not run without her!

In addition, Cerrie has notably volunteered and been selected as the Team Manager for North West Fury within Wales Netball’s National League for the past two years. Despite taking on such a large undertaking alongside her other commitments, Cerrie carries out this role phenomenally. As well as fulfilling her duties as Team Manager, such as leading on squad travel arrangements, competition and event planning and kit (in collaboration with Wales Netball), leading on communicative and operational tasks, she also went steps further. Cerrie would often help with drills in sessions and play alongside Fury in training, bringing a sense of comradeship to each session. Squad member, Jemma Milburn, noted:

“She is an absolute workhorse, ensuring we were always prepared and had absolutely nothing to worry about besides playing our own game.”

Simone Gould, Head Coach of North West Fury, said:

“We would have been lost without Cerrie there to keep us all together in check and organised, we called her the Oracle as she knew everything and if not would make sure she got the answer. We’re thankful to her for giving up her free time to support not only the players but the management team #TeamGreen”

Cerrie continues to add and expand to her list of contributions to Wales Netball, and netball in North West Wales, for which we are extremely grateful. Thank you, Cerrie, for everything you do, and for doing it enthusiastically to better the experiences of those around you.

Wales Netball’s Volunteers of the Month will be announced at the beginning of every month, with an article going on our website and posts going out across all social media channels.

If you would like to nominate your coach, an umpire, or someone who helps your netball club and the wider community, complete the nomination form using this link – https://forms.gle/fREqFRkPFyHnoPRn6