Tonight is the annual Pride of Manchester awards and in anticipation of the event, we wanted to look at the heroes that will be honoured this evening for their great efforts at improving their city.
With coronavirus restrictions in place, the event will be skipping the red carpet, but celebrity guests will be in attendance with stars such as Emma Bunton, Marcus Rashford, David Jason, Naga Munchetty and Amanda Holden turning up to the Kym Marsh-hosted event.
On hosting the ceremony tonight, Kym Marsh said: “Pride of Manchester is so close to my heart, and I absolutely loved meeting this year’s amazing winners.
“You can’t help but be inspired by their stories, and it’s a wonderful show.”
Freddie Xavi and Hughie Higginson – Young Fundraisers of the Year
(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)
Hughie Higginson wanted to give back to charity after three years of receiving treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia but on the day of his charity walk, he was too ill to take part, leading best friend Freddie to do it in his place.
Freddie would then try to raise £1,000 before Christmas by running 2km a day, with Hughie joining him at the final stage to finish together.
The smaller £1,000 goal was overshot, leading to the pair estimated to have helped raise over £200,000.
Frank Rothwell – Fundraiser of the Year
At 70 years old, Frank impressed the world by single-handedly rowing across the Atlantic in order to raise money for dementia research in honour of his brother-in-law who sadly passed as Frank made his journey.
With over a million pounds raised, Frank is the oldest person to have completed the challenge knows as ‘the world’s toughest row’.
Sam Thompson – Special Recognition
(Image: Daily Star)
Sam will be recognised for his amazing effort to help reduce stigma around the topic of male rape after surviving an attack himself that lead to him working closely with police to advise on how best to deal with victims.
Christine Burns – Lifetime Achievement Award
Christine will be hitting the stage tonight for her amazing work in seeking vital human rights for transgender people.
In 1993 Christine joined the Press for Change where she campaigned for the rights and treatment of transgender people.
Christine’s efforts helped the PFC win cases in the European Court of Justice to protect human rights, a High Court case in 1998 over NHS treatment and in 2002 the European Court of Justice agreed to the right of privacy and marriage.
Christine was also a negotiator with ministers in drafting the 2004 Gender Recognition Act, the world’s first legislation that allowed people to legally change their gender.
She came out as transgender in 1995, saying: “I believe strongly that if you are going to represent people then they need to see who you are, what you stand up for and what you’re about, you can’t be a hidden figure.”
Kiera Arnold – Teenager of Courage
(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)
At just 13 years old Kiera is being awarded for her efforts in raising money after starting her own charity named Kiera’s Wishes that helps pay for the final request of patients at Dr Kershaw’s Hospice.
Kiera took part in a special dance off at Christmas to help reach her goal of £25,000 raised for the cause and sells special items she makes at craft fairs and via Facebook to help.
Christie Spurling – Children’s Champion
Marcus Rashford has his own award that he will be giving away tonight to Children’s Champion Christie Spurling who started the N-Gage project, built to help kids at risk of education or social exclusion.
Christie worked with police to build the network of community volunteers while giving one on one support to children himself.
The charity now has a mobile youth club in the form of a 25 seater bus filled with games consoles, tablets and music for teenagers to engage with.
Christie’s personal history as an adopted black child to a white family made it hard for him to identify with the people around him, leading him to struggle in school and eventually be expelled.
It was after years of being unable to find a job that Christie discovered he had a passion for working with young people and wanted to create the project to help children with similar backgrounds to himself.
His efforts recently had him be awarded an MBE for his dedication to helping the children of Manchester.
Claire Wright and Chris Squires – TSB Community Hero
(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)
Claire and Chris set up the Trafford Veterans service to help lend support to former veterans and emergency service workers who are struggling with their mental health, growing the operation from a simple table chat to a larger support network with events like a breakfast club, a football team and craft group.
Leroy Holcroft – Outstanding Bravery
Leroy will be winning an award for his bravery through selflessly swimming out to save the life of a teenage girl who was struggling to stay afloat while 400m from shore.
Eden and Kaitlin – Spirit of Manchester
(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)
This young pair will be hitting the stage for their selflessness in helping their mother raise their disabled sister and not leaving their home for five months in order to protect her from coronavirus.
Sgt Lee Valentine, DC Marsha Selby, DC Ashleigh Williams, DC Tom Wright, Adam Ward and Miah Uddin – Emergency Services
Sgt Valentine and his colleagues will be accepting an award for their brave efforts to stop a terrorist knifeman who began violently stabbing people on a train platform on New Year’s Eve in 2018.
Adam Ward and Miah Uddin will also be receiving the award as Metrolink Trave Safe Staff who helped subdue the man with Valentine’s crew.
Mike and Lucy Carroll – Special Recognition
(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)
After years of fighting for access to new treatment for a rare neurodegenerative condition called Batten Disease that afflicted their children, Mike and Lucy will be receiving the award for their continued campaign to have the treatment made available at the Manchester Children’s Hospital.
Their children Ollie and Amelia both suffered from the condition, with Ollie sadly losing his ability to walk, talk or see because of it.
The continued battle to raise funds and gain access to the treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital lead to them eventually winning, making Amelia one of the youngest children in the UK to receive the therapy.
Now the pair are trying to raise £250,000 so that the medics at Great Ormand Street can begin a new clinical trial to help save the eyesight of children like their own.
Mia Hignett – Child of Courage
Mia will be winning an award tonight for her quick thinking and bravery when calling emergency services after her mother began to have a seizure.
With guidance from the operator, she cleared her mother’s airway, placed her in the recovery position and cared for her one-year-old sister until paramedics arrived.
The Pride of Manchester Awards will be hosted on Youtube at 7pm tonight
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
