A HUSBAND and wife whose Southside-based charity helps children in desperate circumstances all over the world were just some of the winners at this year’s Irish Mirror Pride of Ireland awards.
Mags and Stuart Wilson from Zest4kidz work with kids from young female prisons in Belarus, to child soldiers in Uganda and young girls rescued from prostitution in India.
Stuart also runs Second Chance projects in Ireland, working with children and young people who have fallen out of the school system due to drugs, crime or other problems.
Maggie and Stuart were nominated by former student Marie Williams.
The judges said:
“They are so unique because what they are doing is taking underprivileged kids from Ireland, helping them on the way to recovery and then showing these kids the harsh realities of what other children, living in desperate circumstances around the world, face.
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Maggie said:
“To win the award is a huge honour for us. It creates awareness of our work with vulnerable kids and hopefully will show that anyone can make a difference reaching out to those in need.
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The Wilsons’ award was part of the night Ireland paid tribute to its unsung heroes.
Dublin’s Mansion House played host to courageous children, selfless community leaders, amazing teachers and incredible charity workers during the glitzy bash.
Amanda Byram, Louis Walsh, Daniel and Majella O’Donnell, Rosanna Davison, Pat Kenny, Vogue Williams, Nadia Forde, Jedward and boyband Hometown were among the celebrities who came together to pay tribute to the people who work selflessly to make our country a better place.
Pat Kenny presented Christina Noble with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her work saving the lives of thousands of children living on the streets of Vietnam and Mongolia.
Upon receiving her award the tireless campaigner said:
“When you come from my kind of background it’s very special to be honoured like this because it makes you feel like you belong.
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The Pride of Ireland heroes included courageous Brave Caoimhin O’Donovan (9) from Co Clare.
The brave boy picked up an award for his selflessness when his twin sister Shona became the youngest child in the country to contract Aplastic Anaemia, an acute bone marrow failure condition.
He offered himself up as a match for a bone marrow transplant and endured the painful process without complaint because he wanted his sister to get better.
In total, 11 of Ireland’s incredible but ordinary people who have done extraordinary things were honoured.