CAMPAIGNER RACHEL JOINS WINNERS AT ST DAVID AWARDS
HEROES SALUTED:
HEROES were last night toasted all over Wales for their “extraordinary” contribution to the nation.
First Minister Mark Drakeford unveiled the winners of the country’s St David Awards 2020 online for the first time ever.
A special hour-long broadcast had to be screened after plans to host the glittering event in March were pushed back due to the Covid-19 lockdown.
Mr Drakeford paid tribute to the “everyday but extraordinary” winners and said he hoped they would find comfort in their recognition.
Awards were given for bravery, humanitarian, community spirit, young person, innovation, science and technology, business, culture, sport and the First Minister’s Special Award.
Welsh rugby legend and former British Lions captain Gareth Thomas, 45, was honoured with the Special Award as a result of his campaign to end the stigma around sexuality and HIV.
Mr Drakeford said: “What is most captivating is that all of our nominees think their actions are nothing to sing about. Well they are. They are everyday people doing extraordinary things that have helped to change lives for the better.
“I am honoured to recognise them in our national St David Awards.
“I have chosen Gareth Thomas for my Special Award as he is a role model for people of all ages, but particularly young people.
“He has been open and honest about his sexuality and his HIV status and his story has been inspiring.
“His approach will help break down barriers and stereotypes, increase understanding and will help others in a similar situation to never be ashamed of who they are.”
Winners were recognised from all different walks of Welsh life.
The Bravery Award was jointly given to Joel Snarr and Daniel Nicholson who risked their lives to save a pilot, his teenage niece and nephew after their small aircraft struck overhead power lines and crashed onto the A40 in front of them on the dual carriageway near Abergavenny.
They had never met each other before but both jumped out of their cars and ran towards the burning plane to rescue the trio who were trapped inside.
The pair struggled to wrestle open the doors but Daniel managed to spot a crack in the back window and broke it to rescue the teenagers.
Joel, meanwhile, managed to drag the pilot to safety. Minutes later the plane was engulfed by flames but all three were unharmed. Former bomb disposal expert Joel had been suffering from PTSD as a result of his experiences but he instinctively ran towards the scene with Daniel.
Recognition was given in the Humanitarian Award to tireless domestic abuse campaigner Rachel Williams.
Her 18 years as a victim of domestic violence ended in tragedy during 2011, when her abuser shot her with a sawn-off shotgun before killing himself.
Six weeks later, her 16-year-old son committed suicide as he struggled to cope with his continuing trauma. Rachel has been battling to get the Domestic Abuse Bill through Parliament and during September 2019 she played host to the first survivor-led domestic abuse conference in south Wales – Stand Up to Domestic Abuse (#sutda), which brought together survivors and professionals under one roof.
Her friends paid tribute to her bravery, kindness and described her as passionate and said she is most outstanding for dedicating her life to helping women all over Wales. Inspirational Butetown-born Wasem Said was celebrating winning the Community Spirit Award in recognition of steering youngsters away from knife crime and drugs through Tiger Bay amateur boxing club.
Not only has membership soared to more than 300 youngsters but he has championed the view that boxing can help strengthen a community.
His ethos is that members learn discipline, respect, healthy living and how to build their own self-esteem after turning his life around.
The Young Person Award went to Swansea-born Tyler Ford, 12, who already has nine World Kickboxing Champion accolades to his name.
He is also a triple gold medallist in the World Martial Art Games and was the youngest person ever to be inducted into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame, at just eight.
Tyler, who has more than 200 international gold medals in international contests, manages to juggle his kickboxing and school work with charity work.
The Welsh Amateur Boxing Association national boxing champion and British Mixed Martial Arts champion is also an ambassador for Bullies Out and Bully Beware.
He has been volunteering to help other children, hospitals, and the RSPCA centre.
The youngster even gifted his world champion gold medal to one of his young fans in hospital and raised funds for a specially adapted wheel
chair so the boy could leave his hospital bed.
In the Innovation, Science and Technology Award, it was pioneering Professor David Worsley who clinched the top prize.
The vice-president of innovation at Swansea University and Tata Steel professor, who is originally from Pembrokeshire, has brought universities in Wales and worldwide together to find shared solutions for the future, particularly in the area of solar energy.
He has won a host of engineering and sustainability awards during his 30-year career, which has seen him win more than £140m in research funding due to his achievements in the field of active building, which links solar energy generation and storage technologies for heat, power and transport.
His current portfolio is one of the largest of its kind in Britain.
The Business Award went to the brother and sister duo Ed Reeves and Rachel Clacher who set up Moneypenny 20 years ago.
Now the firm employs 650 people at its Wrexham headquarters and has offices in London and Charleston, USA. With the firm’s value at around £100m, it is growing at a rate of around 20% a year.
The way in which the company invests in its staff led it to win a place on the Sunday Times list of Best Business to Work For for close to 10 years.
In 2015, Moneypenny set up We Mind the Gap, a charity offering traineeships with coaching and mentoring to young people in Wrexham, which has gone on to being expanded to cover Flintshire, Manchester and Liverpool.
Meanwhile, in the Culture Award, Russell T Davies, who is one of the leading British television writers of our generation, was the named the winner.
The multiple award-winner rose to fame with his ground-breaking series Queer As Folk, Bob and Rose and The Second Coming.
He won an army of fans worldwide through his revival of Doctor Who and Torchwood.
Russell has since created the trilogy Cucumber, Banana and Tofu, A Very English Scandal, Years and Years for BBC One/HBO and is now filming his five-part drama Boys for Channel 4.
Welsh rugby captain Alun Wyn Jones won the Sport Award.
He led the Welsh rugby team to the Six Nations Grand Slam and the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup and is Wales’ most capped player with 134 caps.
Alun Wyn is one of only seven players who have beaten South Africa, Australia and New Zealand while touring these countries with the British Lions.
■ A special programme about the St David Awards will be broadcast on ITV Wales at 10.45pm on Thursday, July 16.
■ People can also see the St David Awards 2020 at https://gov.wales/st-david-awards
■ Nominations for next year’s awards are now open, go to https://gov.wales/st-davidawards