Away from the headlines, our big society is to be celebrated...

Mornings spent watching the Japanese tsunami, earthquake and ensuing nuclear meltdown, or the civil unrest in the Middle East, make you appreciate the relative simplicity of life in Britain today – yes, there are cuts and occasionally it snows, but it’s really not that bad for most of us, is it?

Still, as a homeworker, I have a tendency to have 24 hour rolling ‘news’ on as the background to my day and if you believe the hype the end is nigh.

The desperation for headlines has been such that I recently watched one news anchor interview two experts, one pro and one anti-nuclear, and take so many pot shots at the pair that they ended up in complete agreement against her. That’s not news, that V for Vendetta-style righteous indignation, without an obvious target.

(Away from the soap box, though…)

While of course having no bearing on the global battles being faced day to day, at Surrey Life we are attempting to do our bit for our small wooded corner in the coming months with two new projects.

One, our first Surrey Life Community Heroes list, can be seen over ten pages of April’s magazine – out on Wednesday. While it is by no means a definitive guide to everyone who helps make our county a better place, it is a snapshot: featuring 40 amazing local residents and their inspirational stories.

The second is hopefully something to bring a few smiles to people’s faces: the Festival of Surrey Life (including the World Championships of Apple Hurling). Our royal weekend-long community-themed celebration of what makes life in Surrey special, takes place at The Fox Revived, near Horley. Fingers crossed for the weather…

While equipment and education are essential, as so emotionally highlighted by Comic Relief on Friday, they are nothing without the people willing to use them to support those in need, whether in Africa, the Middle East, Japan or, indeed, Surrey.

This is our thank you to all the charity volunteers, lifesavers and other proactive members of the Surrey community; the heroes who so often put their own lives on hold for the benefit of others, while not receiving the appreciation that our sports stars and pop icons are so regularly showered with.

Matt