The festival was held on Sunday, July 3 at Club North Haven and was organised by the Camden Haven Chamber of Commerce.

President of the chamber Rod Bucton said the event has been years in the making.

"The idea for this event first started about three years ago as a celebration of our great community," he said.

"Many hours of effort went into this event and unfortunately, on two other occasions, this event has been canceled due to a whole range of things that has happened to this community over the last few years."

The event was organised to showcase local music and artwork, as well as thank and honour emergency services for their hard work.

Live music entertained the crowd on Sunday afternoon, while a variety of food and drink trucks were set up.

A jumping castle, local artwork and pottery workshops also kept people entertained throughout the afternoon.

Emergency services were also on hand to provide information to curious locals.

Thank you certificates were awarded to local emergency service crews during the opening of the festival.

"We've got a number of certificates of appreciation that we'd like to pass on to our emergency services," Mr Bucton said.

Mayor Peta Pinson presented the certificates with Uncle Bill and said the festival's overall aim is to bring the community together.

"I congratulate the members of the Camden Haven Chamber of Commerce who are honouring the dedication of our local emergency services," she said.

"The festival also aims to showcase our region's talented artists and musicians while we bring our community together."

Thank you certificates were awarded to emergency service personnel who assisted during the 2019/2020 bushfires and last year's floods.

Thank you certificates:

Marine Rescue Camden Haven

Crews worked tirelessly throughout both the bushfires and the recent floods. They provided personnel to the Emergency Operations Center in Port Macquarie, as well as providing welfare during the bushfires.

During the 2021 floods they transported people to the evacuation center at the Laurieton United Services Club.

Recently, their watercraft were deployed to assist with flooding in Yamba and Lismore.

Camden Haven SES

Crews assisted in the 2019 bushfires with evacuations and helped residents and other services as far afield as Wauchope.

Their volunteers worked day and night lending a helping hand while their own houses burned.

During the march 2021 floods, 22 volunteers from the Camden Haven SES responded to over 284 requests for emergency flood and storm assistance which included 89 flood rescues.

Some of their members were assisting others while their own homes were also flooding.

Karl Krietar SES

He evacuated 83 people from floodwaters.

He also patrolled streets nonstop for hours in the SES boat picking up stranded people and their pets, often turning the motor off so he could hear their calls for help.

NSW Fire and Rescue Laurieton Station

During the worst bushfire season on record, they were at the forefront.

There would not have been a day during those 12 months that one of their trucks did not respond to fires somewhere in the state.

Their response to the flooding disaster of the Camden Haven was also exceptional, performing over 100 rescues of people and animals on their very first day.

Several of their crew worked tirelessly for more than 24 hours before relief was available.

Bonny Hills Rural Fire Brigade

During the fires they were also deployed to various locations around the state, they responded to over 240 callouts, amounting to about 20,000 man hours.

They also assisted with the local floods in 2021, helping residents with hosing out homes inundated with mud in North Haven, Dunbogan and the North Shore of Port Macquarie.

They also provided assistance during the Lismore floods, with a number of their members deployed to the region.

Camden Haven Rural Fire Brigade

They attended numerous fires and emergencies in the Mid North Coast area.

More recently in 2021, the brigade assisted Fire and Rescue crews in the Kendall area for flood rescues, and later were tasked alongside other RFS brigades with cleaning up towns throughout the region.

Lake Cathie Rural Fire Brigade

The brigade received a call in October 2019 that the Crestwood fire had made its way down Ocean Drive toward Lake Cathie.

Lake Cathie Brigade, along with fire brigades from around the district and the state focused on protecting property and lives.

They fought the fire around the clock for weeks, with the result that no houses were lost due to their heroic efforts.

Collectively, the brigade completed 4746 hours of active firefighting throughout the 2019 to 2020 bushfire season.

The brigade also provided flood mitigation work during 2021 and 2022, sending multiple crews and resources locally and to the northern part of the state to assist with the cleanup.

Lorne Rural Fire Service

During the fires in September 2019 to January 2020, 14 members volunteered for service clocking up well over 1600 hours.

The brigade is very proud of its achievements here and elsewhere.

Mid North Coast Police District

The local police assisted other emergency service crews during the 2019 and 2020 fires, and also the 2021 floods.

Laurieton Ambulance Station

The station consists of 16 paramedics that work to provide 24/7 emergency healthcare to the community.

Throughout the floods and fires they assisted in safe passage of those delicate health care needs to emergency evacuation points.

Laurieton Ambulance Station paramedics Ian Hamilton and David Rine

Combined, they have clocked up 75 years of service.