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Ava's winning marker design shows everyone is welcome in Thurso


By Staff Reporter- NOSN

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With the newly painted route marker are (from left) Thurso development officer Joan Lawrie, Ava Kelly, Laura White from Sustrans, and Ava's granny Lora Dillon.
With the newly painted route marker are (from left) Thurso development officer Joan Lawrie, Ava Kelly, Laura White from Sustrans, and Ava's granny Lora Dillon.

A DESIGN based around the theme that everyone is welcome in Thurso has proved a winner for a local youngster.

Seven-year-old Ava Kelly won a competition held by Thurso Community Development Trust and Sustrans to create a new look for the Millennium Milepost National Cycle Route marker at Thurso railway station.

The competition was launched for people in the town to contribute their ideas for a redesign and more than 20 entries were submitted. A panel of community members picked the best four which were then put to a nationwide Sustrans vote via Twitter.

With a massive 78 per cent of the vote, Ava's design was chosen as the winner.

Ava was inspired by everyone being welcome in Thurso and she created the design with various flags – Canadian, as she had been to Canada on holiday; Japan, as on the days she was completing her design she had seen Japanese tourists visiting Thurso; and the Caithness flag to represent the county.

Joan Lawrie, Thurso development officer and volunteer development manager of the trust, said: “We were delighted to see that Ava’s design was chosen. The theme of it, with everyone being welcome in Thurso, completely fits with our aims for the trust in creating a warm, welcoming community with kindness at its heart.

Ava painting the Caithness flag onto the route marker.
Ava painting the Caithness flag onto the route marker.

"To have the Caithness flag in the design and the bright colours meant we knew it would really brighten up the station area with the repaint.”

Laura White from Sustrans, the national charity which encourages active travel, travelled north to lead in the repaint of the Millennium Milepost assisted by Ava, her granny Lora Dillon, Joan and the Breeze Ladies Cycle Network Caithness.

Ava said: “I love seeing my design being brought to life. I want everyone to be welcome in Thurso and that is what my design is.”

To mark the millennium, Sustrans commissioned artists to create 1000 markers which were cast in bronze and appear up and down the country. Originally all bronze coloured, they are now in need of a refresh and Sustrans has been working with communities to inject some colour into the markers and give a sense of place to them.


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