Boy needing heart transplant wins Make a Difference award

An eight-year-old boy who has undergone two major heart surgeries and had a stent fitted has been honoured for his "bravery and courage".

Cameron Manning from Ilminster was born with a rare heart condition and is now on the waiting list for a transplant.

His father Stuart said "He has one heart chamber, where most people have two. His valves are the wrong way round and he's got a hole in his heart - life is very hard for him."

He was celebrated alongside 28 other people at BBC Radio Somerset's Make a Difference Awards on Sunday evening.

The finalists were recognised for going above and beyond to help others at a ceremony at Westlands Entertainment Venue in Yeovil, with eight overall winners announced.

Brian Barker runs angling sessions for young people to support them with their emotional wellbeing.

He says, "Children these days are so hard up and if they want to learn to fish they they have to pay, so I take them for free."

His goal of becoming a qualified angling coach came after facing his own challenges in life after he and his siblings were abandoned by their mother as children and then more recently he was diagnosed with bladder cancer.

Mr Barker described winning the BBC Make a Difference Award as fantastic and said, "I didn't expect to win it, it made tears come to my eyes."

Former England test cricket captain Michael Vaughan OBE, who judged the category, said: "In life you need great people, great human beings and what Brian is going through in life is incredible. But it's his want to help others and giving so many people the opportunity to do what he loves as well."

The Great Neighbour Award went to Hilary Foster, from Evercreech in recognition of the things she does to make life better in the village.

She loans items such as wheelchairs, walking frames and crutches to people who need them in return for a charity donation in memory of her grandson Oliver who died of a rare type of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Mrs Foster also puts together a local information sheet with events and useful updates, runs coffee mornings and toddler group sessions in the community.

She said: "It started when somebody gave me a wheelchair that they no longer needed and I put it in the garage and just loaned it out to people. Now I've got quite a garage full."

Katie Fox from near Radstock took home the Animal Award.

She set up the charity group Search and Scan which mobilises a team of volunteers to help owners search for their missing pets with special search equipment and remote cameras.

Ms Fox said: "There's utter dismay sometimes. The joy of helping someone, giving the support to someone and reassuring them - it's really rewarding."

The other winners were:

• Green Award: The Cary Repair Cafe meets once a month at the Methodist Church cafe in Castle Cary and repairs an array of different items from kettles and toasters to cuckoo clocks and lawn mowers.

• Community Award: Love Glastonbury, a community fridge and pantry project provides food - that would otherwise go to landfill - to those in the town who need it.

• Volunteer Award: Matthew Davies is an RNLI volunteer from Burnham-on-Sea who has dedicated 31 years of his life to saving lives at sea. He is currently a volunteer lifeboat operations manager at the RNLI in the town, a station with one of the fastest and highest tidal ranges in the world.

• Fundraiser Award: Elisha Turner from Bridgwater was recognised for her fundraising activities which include dance-a-thons, music concerts and cake sales. She has raised money for Bliss, MindUK, Cancer Research and Asthma and Lung UK charities.

The ceremony at Westlands Entertainment Venue was hosted by BBC Radio Somerset presenters Charlie Taylor and Claire Carter.

All 29 finalists received a trophy to recognise their achievements.

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