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Volunteers from across Caerphilly County Borough have been recognised at the annual Gwent Association of Voluntary Organisations (GAVO) Awards.

The ceremony, which was held at Blackwood Miners’ Institute, took place on Thursday, October 20 – the first time the ceremony was held since 2019 due to the Covid pandemic.

Ten different awards were dished out to volunteers on the night, with the runners up receiving certificates.

The first winners on the night were Maddie Malpas, James Sage and Jacob Bryan, who won the Youth Volunteer award. The trio, who help run the 1st Ystrad Mynach Scout Group, supported a variety of activities during the pandemic.

The runner up in that category was 13-year-old Charlie Phillips, who volunteers at Blackwood Cricket Club, where he supports the youth coaches. He has volunteered more than 100 hours since March and is hoping to play for the club’s senior side next season.

The second award on the night was the Parent and Child award, which was won by Iona Watkins. A single mum-of-five, some of which have additional needs, Iona volunteers at her local Parent Network group, helping young mothers and offering advice and reassurance.

The runner-up was Bridging Together – a community group made of residents from Lansbury Park, Porset Park and Mornington Meadows. The group runs a variety of activities and community engagement events in the estates, such as supplying food bags to isolated residents during Covid.

The next category was the Trustee and Director award, which was won by Michelle Jones, director of Libanus Lifestyle in Blackwood.

Speaking after her win, Michelle told Caerphilly Observer: “I’m completely surprised but absolutely thrilled. There’s probably many more equally-deserving people out there who need to be nominated too.

Michelle, who was nominated by Libanus Lifestyle director Karen James, said: “I didn’t know I was up for the award – I thought I was here to support Karen.”

The runner-up was Tara Holloway, co-founder and director of RCV UK, an organisation aiming to ensure nobody in the community is lonely, hungry or frightened.

Next up was the Food Sustainability Volunteer award, won by the Cwmfelinfach Community Hub.

The hub opened in November 2021 and runs a food pantry to help people in the area dealing with food poverty. During the pandemic, volunteers at the hub delivered food packages to those who were self-isolating.

The runner up was Roger Hewitt, who is a lead volunteer on Groundwork Wales’ Routes to Life programme. Through this, Roger helped create a water capture system, which harvests rain water for use in watering plants.

The Sport volunteer award, which was sponsored by Caerphilly Observer, was won by Sam Palmer, who coaches under-8s at Blackwood Town football club, as well as under-11s at Blackwood Cricket Club.

Speaking after his win, Sam thanked the cricket club’s Emma Chalk, who runs the youth section, for nominating him. He also thanked fellow coaches for their support.

“It’s about giving kids the opportunity to take part in sport and the opportunity to have a physically active lifestyle,” he said.

The next award on the night was the High Sheriff’s Award, chosen and presented by Malgwyn Davies, the current High Sheriff of Gwent.

The award was won by Bargoed resident Carl Jones – whose heroic actions during a house fire in his home town earlier this year saw him rescue three families and prevent further damage to neighbouring properties.

Carl told Caerphilly Observer: “I’m humbled. I just acted on instinct.

“I was driving past when I smelt smoke and turned back to have a look. I was just being nosy really. I went into the building and got the elderly lady and son out.

“I was sent gifts by the family but was surprised when I was officially recognised.”

Following on from the High Sheriff award, the next honour presented was the Mayor’s Civic Award, which was presented by Caerphilly County Borough Mayor Cllr Liz Aldworth.

The winner was Sue Griffin, who has tirelessly given 50 years of service having volunteered on several village committees, including as Vice Chair of the Maesycwmmer Partnership. She was also a member of the ‘Friends of Lewis School’ when her son attended Lewis Boys, and also helped fundraise for schools outside the borough.

Before Covid, Sue sang with the Melody Makers group, which supports various charities.

Meanwhile, the Welsh Culture and Heritage award was won by retired postman Christopher Williams, who has been volunteering twice a week doing manual work to help restore Cefn Fforest Miners’ Institute.

The runner up was Nigel Bull, who has been organising the completion of Bedwas’ Community Garden. He has inspired the community to paint, weed, plant, grow and install benches at the garden to create a community space for all.

The night also saw St Cattwg’s Plaid Cymru councillor Haydn Pritchard win in the Health and Wellbeing category.

Cllr Pritchard founded ‘The FitYard’ three years ago, running free exercise classes several times a week for people of all abilities. He was nominated by Lisa Horton, who said: “The FitYard is an amazing group of people who have all been brought together as a result of Haydn’s selfless act of kindness.

“Running on a regular basis with the club has not only helped myself but many of my fellow runners with our mental health – something which we all agree on.”

Mike Rees, who is the secretary of Blackwood Stroke Support Group, came runner-up. He has volunteered in this role since his wife suffered a stroke ten years ago. During Covid, he arranged Zoom meetings for members to stay in touch, and now organises trips and outings to give members the chance to get out and socialise.

The ceremony also saw the gardening group at Caerphilly Miners’ Centre win the Environmental category for their work creating the centre’s Climate Change Garden for the Future. John and Sue Venn, who run litter picks in Crosskeys, were runners up.

The final award was the Inspirational Volunteer of the Year award. This was won by Theresa Heal, who has volunteered with the Parent Network for around half a decade.

After experiencing her own struggles when taking full-time care of her nephew when he was two-years-old, Theresa joined the network’s kinship group – where she later volunteered to help run the Ty Sign group twice a week. During lockdown, she organised online meetings and helped deliver Christmas presents to more than 20 families.

She told Caerphilly Observer: “I’m overwhelmed to win. I started crying when I went up on stage.

“It was quite unexpected but it’s nice to be thanked for something.”

Meanwhile, Royal Air Force veteran Kelly Farr, who gives her time to helping fellow veterans and serving Armed Forces personnel, was runner up.