Tears shed as region says thanks to best of the best

IT WAS a night of high drama, of tears and celebration, as the great and the good of North Staffordshire and South Cheshire came together to honour Our Heroes.

The celebrity awards dinner at the Best Western Stoke-on-Trent Moat House Hotel, Etruria, saw the area's stars from the worlds of sport and entertainment join with civic dignitaries to pay tribute to ordinary men, women and children whose every-day actions prove an inspiration to us all.

The first award of the night, presented by charity champion (and Robbie's mum) Jan Williams, who was one of the competition judges, was for Child Of Courage.

In third place was 10-year-old Joshua Scott, of Cobridge, who has undergone six major operations for a bowel condition but still faces life with a smile.

Runner-up was six-year-old Joshua Dooley, of Holmes Chapel, who is now fighting fit and back at school after beating cancer twice.

The winner was 16-year-old cystic fibrosis sufferer Aaron Hall, of Blurton, who has raised thousands of pounds for charity.

The next award was for Bright Young Thing and was presented by Knutton twins Sam and Amanda Marchant, who shot to fame in Channel Four's Big Brother.

In third place was 17-year-old Marvin Marshall, from Meir Park, who became the first person from Stoke-on-Trent to complete the Army's Diploma In Public Services with distinction.

Runner-up was 14-year-old Smallthorne poet Daniel Tatton who impressed judges with his attempt to bring the power of verse to a new generation.

The winner was 12-year-old Dylan Bowers, of Fegg Hayes, who juggles school work with being a full-time carer for his epileptic mum Jean.

The next award, Beyond The Call Of Duty, was presented by another of the competition judges – Colonel Tim Sandiford, former commanding officer of the Staffordshire Regiment (now 3 Mercian).

In third place was PC Clare Bowker, of Newcastle, who risked her own safety by tackling an armed car thief while off-duty.

Runner-up was the 12-strong Ipstones Fire Crew, who are on-call round-the-clock for their local community and have raised thousands of pounds for charity.

The winner was 25-year-old DC Claire Jesson, of Crewe, who single-handedly put 10 of the 12 most prolific criminals in Congleton behind bars.

The next category was Community Group Of The Year, presented by journalist and TV personality Wendy Turner-Webster.

In third were The Trentham 10 whose campaign to save Trentham High School from closure took them on a long walk from the Potteries to Downing Street.

The runner-up was Milton Park Community Group which has improved the lives of children by raising more than £240,000 for play facilities.

The winner was Coalville Residents' Association, which has fought to ensure families whose homes were threatened with demolition got the best deal possible and were allowed to remain on the estate.

The association, which was set up 10 years ago, has raised more than £100,000 to fund a youth club, adult education courses and a children's play area for the first time on the estate.

Next up was the Good Neighbour award which was presented by the Chief Constable of Staffordshire, Chris Sims.

In third place was 36-year-old father of three Craig Bloor, who hasn't let a heart attack get in the way of his tireless work for young people in his community of Coalville, Weston Coyney.

Runner-up was Pam Pearce, aged 43, a key member of Newstead Community Association and volunteer with the local over-50s club.

The winner was 70-year-old grandmother Gina Proctor, of Barlaston, who has been helping elderly people in her village for decades.

The prizes for the next category, School Star, were presented by Potteries soccer legend and BBC pundit Mark Bright.

In third place was 51-year-old Linda Shaw, who works at Grange Primary, in Meir, and is a classroom assistant, dinner supervisor and all-round superstar to pupils.

Runner-up was 61-year-old John Tierney, the retired headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary, in Goldenhill.

Under his leadership, St Joseph's achieved national recognition for children's progress and for the creative talents of its pupils. He was also instrumental in attracting funding for a multi-sports complex at the school.

The winner was Clint Lakin, a hugely-popular teacher at Wolstanton High School.

The 39-year-old science teacher is a head of year and plays a lead role in supporting gifted and talented pupils. He is also in charge of school trips – which he calls the Ministry Of Fun.

Clint was instrumental in setting up the school's buddy network as well, where young people have been trained as peer counsellors and tackled bullying.

The award for Hero Of The NHS was presented by 13-time World Darts Champion Phil "The Power" Taylor.

In third place was a doctors' surgery which goes the extra mile for its patients.

From getting hold of expensive medications, beyond the budget of the local hospital, to buying wedding presents for patients – Furlong Medical Centre, in Tunstall, is just what the community ordered.

Runner-up was Dr Christine Hall, a surgeon at The University Hospital Of North Staffordshire, described as having an impeccable bedside manner and being "like a second mother to her patients".

The winner was another consultant at The University Hospital Of North Staffordshire, Dr Philip Roberts.

Since he arrived five years ago, he has brought about wholesale changes to the way old people are treated for broken bones. The hospital is now the safest place in Britain for elderly people to have a thigh operation.

The next award, for Adult Carer Of The Year, was presented by the Bishop of Lichfield, the Right Reverend Jonathan Gledhill.

In third place was 45-year-old Juliet Malyon, from Knutton, described as a wife and mum-in-a-million. She is the sole breadwinner in her house, as well as the carer for her husband Rob who has suffered a series of strokes.

Runner-up was a 78-year-old grandmother from Dresden. Dorothy Lester's life changed forever when her husband Terry suffered a severe stroke six years ago.

Dorothy, who suffers from kidney disease, heart failure, spinal problems and arthritis, now provides 79-year-old Terry with round-the-clock care.

The winner was mother-of-six Deborah Windle, aged 36, whose caring nature saw her strike up an immediate friendship with an 86-year-old neighbour who had fallen on hard times.

She now cooks, cleans, washes and handles all the household bills and jobs for her friend Leonard Low.

Next up was the award for Charity Champion Or Volunteer Of The Year which was presented by comedian and TV presenter Nick Hancock.

In third place was prostate cancer campaigner Gary Steele who has helped raise more than £200,000 over the past nine years to help the NHS to support and treat sufferers in South Cheshire.

The 67-year-old has devoted his life to raising awareness of the illness since he was first diagnosed in 1999, and visits schools and workplaces in South Cheshire giving talks about the condition.

Runner-up was the man who fulfilled his dream of staging an internationally-renowned race in the Potteries.

Don Shelley has put Stoke-on-Trent on the map for runners and created vehicles to raise millions of pounds for charities.

The 71-year-old is the organiser of The Potters 'Arf, an annual 13.1 mile race around the streets of the city which started in 2005, and was also director of its predecessor, The Potters Marathon, which ran for 23 years. Don couldn't attend the awards ceremony as he was away on holiday but recorded a special thank you video which was played to last night's audience.

The winner has, for almost half a century, been giving up his free time to help the Staffordshire Red Cross.

Graham Yeomans, a semi-retired paramedic, has helped train thousands of people in first aid, after joining the Red Cross as a boy 49 years ago.

Graham, aged 61, from Biddulph, is now the chairman of the Red Cross Volunteer Council in Staffordshire.

The penultimate award, the Britannia Fairness Award, was won by lovestoke.org – a group which created a website aimed at promoting all that is good and positive about living and working in the Potteries. The award was presented by Britannia's communications chief, Graham Leftwich.

The most emotional moment of the night came with the presentation of the final prize – the Editor's Special Award.

Editor-In-Chief of Staffordshire Sentinel News and Media, Mike Sassi, presented the Women Fighting For Herceptin group with a cheque for £1,000 towards their cancer charity.

The ladies were welcomed on to the stage with a standing ovation for their campaign, which resulted in a U-turn in Government policy which has given new hope to families across the UK whose relatives can now get life-prolonging anti-cancer drugs on the NHS.