THE Pride of Gwent awards received hundreds of nominations from across the region and now we can reveal the winners.

People shared stories of the amazing work being done in communities by people and groups to improve the lives of others.

At a special judging day at the Coldra Court Hotel in Newport, the Pride of Gwent winners were chosen by a panel of judges.

South Wales Argus editor Nicole Garnon said: “It was very difficult to choose between the people nominated for Pride of Gwent Awards. We had an enjoyable day with the judges choosing our winners.”

The winners of each category have now been chosen and will be awarded at a special event.

One of Newport’s most recognisable figures Ron Jones won the Pride of Gwent Lifetime Achievement Award. The 99-year-old Auschwitz survivor received numerous nominations for his work selling poppies for the Royal British Legion’s annual Poppy Appeal.

His service to charity followed his military service overseas during the Second World War with the 1st Battalion of the Welsh Regiment in North Africa, before being captured by Axis forces and sent to Auschwitz. He now visits schools to tell children about his experiences.

Upon hearing that he had been nominated for an award Mr Jones said: “It’s very nice to hear, I’m always looking to give back to the community. I enjoy giving talks to schools about the war.

“I want to carry on as long as I am able, I still feel physically fit.”

There was one clear winner in the Carer Award category. The award went to Annie Wills, of Cwmbran, who was nominated by her daughter Terrie Thomas. The 72-year-old cares for her daughter Alexandra who has the life-limiting condition Ataxia-Telangiectasia which means she relies on a wheelchair and both her speech and swallowing abilities are affected.

Mrs Wills works part-time at the accountants Steve Turzynski & Co and is also a breast cancer survivor.

In her nomination her daughter said: “I don’t know where she gets the energy or strength from. My mum is the most selfless, kind and giving person I know.”

The Environment Award was won by the Pontypool Park Friends for the tireless work they do to improve the park and the community. The award nomination praised the work of the group in keeping the park clean and litter free, alongside their continued efforts towards the restoration of features and landscape improvements.

Speaking on behalf of the group Jeannette Fry said: “We are extremely pleased to have won the award. It’s great publicity for the park and we would love people to come and appreciate the park.”

Ron Ford was chosen as the Pride of Gwent Local Hero Award recipient because of his tireless work in the community. Mr Ford, of Griffithstown, is a dedicated littler picker and has given up hours of his time to keep Torfaen tidy since he took retirement. He is a keen supporter of Keep Wales Tidy and regularly supports council activities.

Mr Ford said: “I’m chuffed especially because it’s a local award. I’m really looking forward to the awards event, and it’s nice that people put me forward and appreciate what I do in the community.”

Another group of people doing good work in the community are members of the Monmouthshire Building Society in Risca. Staff members Louise Davies, Maria Saunders, Catherine Probert and Julie Sheldon were nominated for the Good Samaritan Awards, sponsored by Tesco, for going above and beyond for their customers.

They have been visiting a house bound customer for 19 years to help him do his banking. They also use their lunch breaks to visit another customer who has been unable to drive for a year to help him with his banking and bring him cake or anything he needs.

An act of bravery meant William Duggan, who lives in Abergavenny, won the Lifesaver Award. When visiting Wexford, Mr Duggan and his brother went to the rescue of an 11-year-old girl who got stuck in mudflats.

The girl had gone about three metres from the shore edge and became stuck, sinking above her knees. The brothers heard the girl’s cries and went to her rescue, deploying a life buoy on the riverbank and giving the girl instructions in a clear and calm manner as she was brought to safety.

The winner of the Community Hero Award is Claire Day, who lives in Chepstow, founded Street Life Sarnies (SLS), a project that supports homeless people that has grown from 10 to over 3,000 members.

They have two hubs in Chepstow and Bristol, from which they help a number of existing homeless organisations in Gwent by supplying them with food, clothing and resources.

As well as running SLS, Mrs Day works as a teaching assistant and her two children and husband are all part of the SLS team.

Because of the amount of work he does in his community, Councillor Godfrey Thomas, of Ebbw Vale, was chosen as winner of the Special Recognition Award. The owner of Thomas J Thomas & Sons funeral services, he worked to help raise £250,000 towards building a war memorial in Beaufort Hill to honour those who died in wars.

He also established the Beaufort Hill residents group which meet monthly to discuss the needs of community and raise funds through concerts and community evenings. He is involved in organising a range of events and tirelessly works to improve his community.

Katie John, of Rogerstone, was diagnosed with cancer when she was 16 and spent time in intensive care when she got pneumonia as a result of her final session of chemotherapy.

Miss John, who now works as the manager of the Health Serenity Spa in Newport, has been free of cancer for 10 years and raised over £1,500 for the Rainbow Ward at the Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales and £1,500 for the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Upon hearing the news that she had won the Pride of Gwent Achiever Award Miss John said: “I feel extremely grateful and surprised. I didn’t know I had been entered and am extremely happy to have won.”

Irene Allen (not pictured) was nominated by her best friend for the Pride of Gwent Courage Award. The friends grew up in Newport and have known each other for 41 years.

When Miss Allen was 11-years-old she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Since then she has dealt with a number of health complications and supports her boyfriend who is waiting for a kidney transplant.

Now a mother of two she works part-time despite health issues and was described as “inspirational” by her friend.

Another familiar face to Argus readers is Jackie Lewis who was chosen as the Charity Champion. Mrs Lewis holds fundraising events for St David’s Hospice care in memory of her son, Steven Lewis, who was cared for by the charity but died of stomach cancer in 2011 aged 31.

Mrs Lewis and her supporters beat their fundraising target of £44,444.44 last year, and are already well on their way to their 2017 target of raising £50,000.

For giving up so much of her time to the community, Judith Jones, of Cwmbran won the Pride of Gwent Volunteer Award. She works on annual charity theatre productions, visits residential homes to entertain the elderly, was instrumental in the establishment of the Gwent Autistic Society and is chair of the Bassaleg and Rhiwderin Royal British Legion.

First Responder Nerys Harries, of Blackwood, was chosen as the 999 Hero because of the work she has done to save lives. The 21-year-old has been volunteering for the Welsh Ambulance Service for five years.

In that time she has completed 340 on-call hours and attended 114 serious calls, and twice successfully carried out Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on patients.

The winners will be recognised at a special event on March 31 at the Coldra Court Hotel. At the event the overall Pride of Gwent winner will be announced.

The South Wales Argus would like to thank the panel of judges for their time: Simon Pullen from Friars Walk, Newport City Council leader Councillor Debbie Wilcox, Gwent Police representative Chief Inspector Joanne Bull, Morgan Stevens from Newport Transport, Ryan Dutton from Chepstow Racing and Events, Paul Williams on behalf of the Celtic Manor, Karen Welch from Western Power, Colin Hayward of George Street Furnishers, Emma Smallcombe from Admiral Insurance, Bob Clark of Clarks, Denise Parker of Middleton Mobility, Anouk van Niekerk from St Joseph’s Hospital, David Bolton from Melin Homes, Helen Goodwin and Vicky Gallagher representing Tesco, Hussain Bayoomi from Newsquest and South Wales Argus editor Nicole Garnon.