YOUNG Hero Leah Lewis came though as an outstanding young woman, who has dedicated all her time to encouraging young people to do their best.

Leah started work at Tenby Youth Club at the age of 16 and continued to work there while doing a degree in Youth Work at Trinity College Carmarthen.

She has worked with the Community Team, Outreach Team and as a children’s right officer.

From there she started at Greenhill as a member of the Youth Worker team.

She has run many projects and in the last two years has specialised in work around violence to women.

Working with young people, together they have created for the first sexual harassment tool kit that will be delivered across Pembrokeshire. This work has led to a trip to New Zealand with a group of young people for an experience of a life time exploring their work around gender based violence.

The young people at Greenhill with whom Leah works with have just completed their second year of annual fundraising for men’s mental health and domestic abuse charities, encouraging young people to take part in Long Course Wales and with various other events, they have raised to date over £3,000.

Leah deserves this award for being so inspirational and so dedicated to helping others as well being a busy mother. She goes above and beyond for all those she meets.

Thanking everyone who nominated her, Leah received her award and said: “I find it a privilege to do the job I do and work with the most incredible people across the county.” She added “a huge thank you” to her husband and three children “who put up with the brunt of the busy work,” and also her mum, “who makes everything so much easier because she’s on hand to look after my three children while I look after all the other kids in the community.”

The Young Hero Award was sponsored by Britvic.

EVERYONE in Tenby relies heavily on Tenby Post office for all the facilities it offers, from post office, banking, household goods and groceries and deliveries. Fiona and Vince and their family and staff are always on hand to help in everyone possible situation. And often described as great pillars of the community.

One Christmas, a customer realised that, owing to health reasons, she had been unable to go shopping. Presents were sorted, along with food but, to her dismay there was no Prosecco or orange juice for the usual breakfast Bucks Fizz!

One quick online shop and these lovely people came in their Christmas jumpers to deliver.

They went truly above and beyond that morning.

Families purchase gas and electricity for their meters through the Post Office. Family circumstances - especially in times of ill health can make this difficult. One family sent their son to deal with the matter and Fiona and Vince along with all their staff gave him all the help he needed.

Another customer explained that nothing is too much trouble for them. “A quick call and you can place an order and have it delivered. Helping in the community is one of their specialities. Nothing is ever too much trouble.”

Vince Malone said: “We turned up tonight to celebrate other people, and there’s a great array of incredible community people in this room, so we’re proud to be here.

“We travel a lot; we go around the country and we always look forward to coming back, because this is where we feel comfortable; this is where we feel we enjoy ourselves. And we enjoy ourselves because, actually, it is about kindness.”

“All too often, it’s very easy to not be kind. The thing I’m so proud about today is - not winning the award, but actually - us collectively getting together to celebrate something that we all know we should do,” he said, adding, “I think you should all give yourselves a round of applause because you’re all wonderful people,” before setting a lead by starting to clap.

The Community Business Award was sponsored by Tenby Town Council.

IT came through loud and clear on all the nominations for Rebecca Rees, of The Old Chapel, Tenby, that she represents everything a Good Neighbour should be.

She is always so kind, understanding and helpful to all.

She shows selfless care and compassion in all her actions for those most in need in our community or who are just passing through.

Tenby is definitely a better place to live with in all her love and kindness to all she encounters. She always encourages people to look after each other and is a perfect example to all of us.

Accepting her award from Councillors Laurence Blackhall and Sam Skyrme-Blackhall, Rebecca said:

“Thank you to whoever nominated me; I really didn’t expect it.” In fact, she nearly didn’t come on the night, having recently suffered a bout of Covid.

“But I just came because there’s so many lovely people and you think, ‘come on, we’ve got to go!’ So thank you so much. I’m not a public speaker, but thank you.

The Good Neighbour Award was sponsored by Bethel Chapel, Pembroke Dock.

NOT a week goes by in the Tenby Observer without incredible accounts of the bravery of our RNLI crew and every single member of the crew deserves this award, but the nominations that came through highlighted two in particular.

Rob James helped save the life of two people during a rescue in 2024.

The first was a casualty who had been thrown into the sea after his yacht exploded 15 miles south of Caldey. Without hesitation, Rob jumped in the water as the unconscious casualty was sinking and managed somehow to keep him afloat until he could be brought aboard the lifeboat.

The second time was another leap into the water to save one of three men who had been in the sea for four hours after their boat capsized. Rob realised that one of the casualties had gone into cardiac arrest and began CPR with other members of the crew until the paramedics could get to him.

Chris ‘Yobbler’ Thomas is a dedicated RNLI volunteer who also received recognition for the incredible efforts during the same shout as Rob in 2024.

But Yobbler doesn’t stop there. He is always ready to serve as a first responder, picking up the phone and answering the call whenever some one is in need. While at work at Kiln Park he quickly responded to a report that a guest was suffering a stroke. He is a true hero in his family and they are very proud of everything he has done.

The Blue Light Award was sponsored by Bevan Buckland.

Tenby Town Council sponsored the Community Volunteer Award, and this was awarded to Sailing Club’s Blake Shaw and Terry Evans.

Accepting the awards, Blake Shaw said: “I’m very honoured to be standing here and receive these awards. I first came to Tenby in 1966 and I’d already started to sail in a mirror dinghy, which I built in my dining room.” He said that his wife was very understanding: “We didn’t buy dining room furniture, we bought a mirror dinghy kit!

“But then I got this post in Greenhill School; the headmaster had a heron dinghy and he asked would I like to get a sailing club going in the school? We did. After a few years we had a few mirror dinghies - six or seven - and started the Junior Section. This was run by the school at the time but, after a few years, legislation required that everyone had to have certificates… there weren’t enough teachers there with the necessary experience, so we moved down to the Sailing Club.

“A really good team has built up over the years,” he added, “and, although I’m getting this award now, if it wasn’t for all the people who have been around me - and Terry, with all the necessary skills, from cooking and fitting out boats; sailing boats: they all need to be seaworthy and safe… and it’s nice in the last couple of years, we’ve actually got a young team starting up. And we’re very grateful; we may even be able to bow out very soon and hand everything over to them.”

IT is great to know that many people in Tenby care about their immediate environment and do their best to make improvements.

Jan Hill received several nominations thanking her for all her hard work at Augustus Hall, Tenby, to make it look so attractive with flower pots, herbs and vegetables, some of which are used in the Hall for cooking. This exemplifies what a garden should be. She always makes sure it is well presented. Jan cares deeply about her community and often gives flowers and plants from her own garden.

People like Jan make small changes that can make a huge difference.

The Eco Warrior Award, sponsored by Statkraft, was accepted on Jan’s behalf by Betty Davies, who said:

“On behalf of Jan and all the committee of the Friendship Group, this is for all of them. Thank you.”

SHANE Roberts was nominated for nearly all the awards so we thought it necessary to create one especially for him.

Not only is Shane the co-owner of one of the most successful taxi firms in Tenby which is more than a cab company; it is a lifeline to many elderly in the community.

A ‘big dude, super guy’, Shane is the town’s Parade Marshall, Royal British Legion County Training officer, Poppy appeal volunteer, and does incredible work for veterans. Tenby Sea Cadet instructor, British Power lifting contender and devoted family man.

The Special Award was sponsored by The Tenby Observer.

On receiving the award, Shane joked that he hoped that, inside the bag, was one of those custard cream cakes he loves so much before saying the following:

“I’m very fortunate to work with a lot of people and volunteer with some awesome, awesome people - be it the Sea Cadets, or the Royal British Legion, or my lovely wife who probably deserves this more than I do, because I annoy her the most with all these ‘avenues’ I do.

“So I’d like to say thank you to all those who volunteer with me, and [indicating his audience], yeah, thank you to you!”

LASTLY, before the raffle was ably run by Tenby Mayor Dai Morgan, our very own Carolyn Cox took to the stage in a heartfelt closing vote of thanks.

“I can’t mention individuals because there are too many,” she said. “This is not a one-woman show; this is a team effort. And it would be unfair to name just a few.

But there were two people she wished to say a big thank you to, because they couldn’t be present: Firstly, her mother, the late Mrs Margaret Hill, “who always taught me that there’s no such word as ‘can’t’”.

She also paid tribute to someone who provided much encouragement during the first year of the Kindness Awards, the late Mr Stuart Fecci, “who became a great friend of mine in a very short period of time. It was a great honour to know him.”

Once again, we express our thanks to the 13 sponsors who made this event possible: St Govan’s Centre (Pembroke Dock), Upton Farm, Scaffold 2000, Tenby House Hotel, A N Morgans Solicitors, G D Harries & Sons, Gerald Blain Associates, W & MJ Rossiter & Sons, Bevan Buckland Accountants, The Giltar Hotel, Heywood Spa Hotel, Tenby Chiropractic and The Clarence House Hotel.

IT was in his opening speech that Laurence Blackhall summed up why we honour kindness in the community in this way:

“In the last 24 hours we’ve heard talk of a beautiful community in Manchester,” he began. “A lack of kindness developed into hatred, and ultimately ended in violence and terror.

“Whenever we forget to be kind, whenever we think unpleasant thoughts, whenever in our irritation or temper we wish ill on others, we must remember that it is an absence of kindness that ultimately led to hatred and violence.”

So he invited everyone, before they celebrated the kindness in our own community, to stand for a moment’s silence, “to remember all those in Manchester, and all those around the whole world whose communities could really do with a dose of kindness.”