Gay Christchurch community leader Sam Johnson is a semi-finalist in two categories of the New Zealander of the Year Awards. The 22-year-old is known for his Canterbury Student Volunteer Army, where he and like-minded students gathered thousands of young people together to help with the clean-up of the quake-ravaged city. The Riccarton-Wigram Community Board member has already won a Sir Peter Blake Leadership Award and was singled out for praise by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her visit to Christchurch last year. Johnson is also involved with the UpRising Trust, which was established by gay community members to raise funds for community groups and reinvigorate the city's queer scene after the quakes. He is now among the nominations for Young New Zealander of the Year, while he and two others are also up for the Local Heroes Award for their work in creating the student army. The winners announced at a ceremony in Auckland in February.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 28th November 2011 - 2:20pm