“I am amazed by the stamina of the volunteers,” she told the large crowd gathered in the James Theatre Community Centre for the Australia Day awards.

Young Citizen of the Year is Breanna Miller. Volunteer Service (as an individual) to the Community was awarded to Kim McFadyen. Senior Sports Award went to joint winners Beau Blundell and Jock Mackay. Junior Sports Award went to Ellie Wallace.

Ms Lewis became the president of the Dungog District Chamber of Commerce in 2011 and has worked tirelessly on many projects that benefit Dungog Shire to make it a thriving place.

During the April super storm event of that year which affected the Dungog Shire, the chamber, led by Jennifer, took on the role of ensuring the business community was being kept well informed of the recovery and how to get back into shape as quickly as possible.

Nominator Lisa Lambert-Smith said Ms Lewis’s dedication and contribution is amazing.

“She is a champion of our shire and I feel she deserves recognition for all she does in keeping people connected during strife like the April superstorm,” she said in her nomination.

“While still running her own business, she works tirelessly to keep the community informed of events within the local area, promotes local businesses and is a passionate citizen of the Dungog Shire.

“Her assistance went above and beyond to give people updates and resources during and after the floods in 2015.

“Her help to others went beyond the role of a volunteer she cared so much and did her best to help others through this natural disaster.”

As president Ms Lewis said one of the most valuable initiatives implemented by the chamber has been their new approach to strategic planning.

“As a member of the committee in 2014-15 we committed to improving our approach to supporting our members and business community by running the organisation better and being more strategic was one of the initiatives we all wanted to move forward with,” she said.