Monmouth Rotary club has been recognised for its tireless charity work carried out in Monmouthshire with a top award. The club, which arranges the annual Monmouth Raft Race among its other charity events, won an inaugural The Mons award for its work in the community. The Mons have been established to recognise Monmouthshire's 'unsung heroes'. Norman Williams, of Monmouth Rotary Club, said: "We really appreciate being recognised in this way. It was totally unexpected." The Mons, which will be awarded annually, have been created by Monmouthshire County Life magazine. Editor, Jo Barnes, from Chepstow, came up with the idea as part of the magazine's 10th anniversary celebrations. Jo, a mother of three, said: "In Monmouthshire we are surrounded by amazing talent, from world class chefs to best-selling authors, but we are also surrounded by unsung heroes who work tirelessly in their own fields to make Monmouthshire the diverse and vibrant county we love." The Mons went to the Severn Area Rescue Association for their efforts to keep the community safe; David Sansom, of Usk, for his work with Usk Festival; Andy and Jackie Murphy, owners of the Inn at Penallt for their hard work in bringing a near-redundant village pub back to life; Anne Rainsbury, curator of Chepstow Museum and one of the founders of Chepstow Festival; Steve Davies, of Homes of Elegance, Abergavenny for his work promoting the town; Donald Stewart for his work spreading a love of traditional Celtic music through Gwent Music Service; Henry Ashby, who is an integral part of the Monmouthshire food scene providing some of the top restaurants in the area with foraged food; The Rotary Club of Monmouth for their fund-raising activities especially the hugely popular Monmouth Raft Race; and Jenny MacGregor who has run the Society for the Welfare of Horses and Ponies near Monmouth for 37 years. A posthumous award was presented to Alison Beasley, a driving force for promoting Chepstow and one of the founders of Chepstow Radio. Her daughter Remy came up from London and attended the event to accept the award on behalf of the family. Each winner received a specially commissioned and unique ceramic pot, which was handmade by talented young graduate Tintern potter, Kristian Vaughan-Adkins. Jo said: "In keeping with the whole ethos of the magazine, we wanted the actual trophy to be something made in the county and we were delighted with the pots Kristian created especially for us." The Mons, held at The Marriott St Pierre, Chepstow, were sponsored by Newport-based public relations firm, DBPR, whose managing director David Barnes, lives in Monmouthshire.