UNSUNG heros who have gone above and beyond in their community have been recognised at an awards ceremony.

The Wokingham Town Civic Awards were held on Tuesday, March 29, at the Town Hall for the first time since the Covid pandemic.

Deputy Mayor, Councillor Maria Gee handed out six awards to the deserving winners 'who have touched the lives of others and worked to make our community stronger.'

The awards recognises residents for making the town a better place, either through their volunteering, charity work or simply helping others.

Councillor David Lee, chairman of civic committee, said: “I am constantly amazed at the voluntary contributions made by so many unsung heroes each year. Usually, these people quietly carry on these good works in an unassuming way without seeking recognition or reward and bring untold happiness and relief to many of our residents.

"Whether help is given through putting food on the table, bringing families together, putting on events for the community to enjoy or offering a helping hand to those who need it, we salute you!

"We have so many dedicated and selfless people working for the benefit of our community on a day-to-day basis, and it is a great honour to recognise them each year through the Civic Awards ceremony.

"Volunteering is a great thing to do and brings more rewards than money can achieve.”

First up, Jean Taylor was awarded for the valuable time she spends volunteering for Rose Buddies, a support service for Wokingham residents with learning disabilities.

She was nominated by Nikk Brown and Thomas Ormsby for leacing active cycling and walking sessions, giving members confidence to go out and explore new areas together.

James Baston was nominated by Kate Taylor and Lynne Simmonds for his contribution to Adopt-a-street and litter picks and his work with New Family Social and the Berkshire Adoption Panel.

James was described as a natural leader and uses his spare time to volunteer and help in as many ways as he can.

Kate said: "People like James often remain 'unsung heroes' but he deserves recognition for the good he does. I also think it would inspire his son, Sebastian, to see greatness and kindness being rewarded.’

"James has a heart of gold and has never been afraid to roll up his sleeves and get his hands dirty when it comes to helping people or his community. He has even tandem jumped out a plane to raise money for charity!"

Gerald de la Pascua is a dedicated volunteer at the Syrian Resettlement Scheme and 'goes above and beyond' to help those in need.

Nominated by Claire Revie and Vickie Robinson for his volunteering work at SHARE Wokingham and his support with the Syrian Vulnerable Person Refugee Resettlement group, Gerald has volunteered with SHARE Wokingham from day one.

He has been integral in the set-up and success of the project. 

Gerald is often seen pushing a wheelbarrow full of food packages to people's houses to ensure nothing gets wasted! 

Claire Revie was nominated by Louise Jedras and Louise Buckingham as founder of SHARE Wokingham and her continuing driving force behind the wonderful community initiative.

Having set up SHARE during the dark days of the pandemic, Claire and a group of volunteers supported local families in need with food and supplies to get them through each week.

Claire has been described as "always cheerful, positive, and incredibly resourceful" by her fellow nominees. 

Alan Rouse was nominated by Andy Goffin and Lyn Baily for his dedication to Wokingham Lions, Wokingham Foodbank, Wokingham Fireworks, Wokingham May Fayre and Wokingham Citizens Advice.

Alan has been involved in many charities within Wokingham over the last 20 years and is always delighted to see charities work together for a common cause.

Alan is described as very tenacious, going above and beyond to help others.

His nominees said: "we thought the quote 'Whenever Wokingham needs volunteers, you will probably find Alan involved'".

Alan has trained as a volunteer with Citizens Advice, spending many hours each week helping those who have great need in a variety of ways. 

Siobhan Sanctuary was nominated by Roy Fewster and Captain Jan Howlin for all her contribution to the Wokingham Pre School Alliance learning, Citizens Advice, Salvation Army and Employment Plus.

Siobhan has compassion, drive, and a huge amount of empathy. She has unending patience with service users who have a vast range of needs from addictions to mental health issues.

Siobhan shows love in action with her knowledge and ability to communicate with people from all walks of life and currently supports 30 plus service users with tenancy support, benefit help, all form filling needs and help to access medical and all health services. 

Cllr Gee was delighted to be presenting the awards, saying the ceremony was one of the highlights of the municipal year.

She said: "Civic awards are one of Wokingham Town Council’s highlights of the year. It is when we recognise great people for doing great things for the greater good of our community.

"It is our chance to say Thank You to those who have been recognised for going above and beyond in their charitable activities.”