At a special event of UNA-Luton held recently, David Jonathan Director of Grassroots Programme, Luton Council of Faiths and the Near Neighbours Programme was presented with a prestigious Award of Recognition for his services to community cohesion and interfaith relations in Luton.
Before HM Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire Helen Nellis presented the Award, UNA Luton Chair Dr Nazia Khanum OBE, DL shared the following words;
"I will say a few words about David Jonathan MBE – widely known as Johny. I have known him for a very long time. In fact I met him soon after his arrival in Luton. He was so keen, so young and so eager to know the communities in Luton. Having worked as Chief Officer for Grassroots and Luton Council of Faiths for years, Johny has become the face of these organisations and has demonstrated to many of us in the community how it is possible to build bridges over turbulent waters and link up with communities seemingly miles apart from each other in so many ways! I am a big admirer of his Peace-building work, his patience, his imagination and his passion for making progress in developing a better understanding of diversity, by building empathy, friendship, trust and common ground for sustainable peace. His determination to improve the conditions of the poor and the exploited was well demonstrated by his passionate work to make Luton a Fair Trade Town. His knowledge of diverse religions is phenomenal and his relentless work towards keeping our town free from conflicts and hostilities is widely known and highly respected. His work has been recently recognised nationally and he received a very well deserved MBE. We are really pleased for him. He has been a supporter of UNA-Luton from its inception. The least we can do to show our appreciation of his passionate work for fairness, peace, environment and youth engagement is to give him a UNA-Luton trophy to say Johny we love you and admire you."
"It was quite humbling and in fact a pleasant surprise to receive this honour," David Jonathan (Johny) stated. “The compliments that were made about me meant a lot more than the actual award. Particularly considering that the UNA Luton Chair, Dr. Nazia Khanum OBE, DL, is a renowned social worker and activist whose life and work have made outstanding contributions to the causes of racial equality and gender justice.”
“I am honoured and extremely grateful to receive UNA Luton Award. My thanks to all those who have overlooked and forgiven all my shortcomings and have supported me, prayed for me and blessed me over the years - all my Trustees, Office Bearers, Staff, Volunteers & Partner organiations. May I also thank in particular, the Anglican, Catholic, Methodist and URC Churches for their support, without which it will be impossible for me and GRASSROOTS to exist.”
