Wrexham's Ruby celebrated for her bravery and kindness

Two family businesses in Wrexham have teamed up to create a new project focussed on the town.

After 18 months of uncertainty during the pandemic, Wrexham Lager and F Jones Food Service have created the The F Jones Initiative.

The first winner of the award is 13-year-old Ruby White who has been recognised for her bravery, kindness, and willingness to put others first despite her own challenges.

Ruby, in mum Melanie’s words “had a very tough start in life”.

One of Wrexham Lager's directors Jon Roberts with Ruby White.

Ruby was born 28 weeks premature, which meant that she had to stay on the special care baby unit at Wrexham Maelor hospital for 14 weeks. During that time, she nearly lost her life, she was extremely poorly and everyone feared she would not survive.

Melanie described how she went to St Giles Church in town to light a candle and say a prayer.

While in the church, she sent a message to Ruby: “come on Ruby, pull your socks up”.

Ruby White of Wrexham.

Melanie thinks God was listening that day, as within 48 hours Ruby started to pull through.

Ruby is now 13-years-old and is in Year 8 at St Joseph's School.

She has cerebral palsy and has survived two large holes in her heart, pneumonia on many occasions, chronic lung disease, severe asthma and is nearly blind in one eye.

Over the years she has had lots of operations, endless hospital appointments and spent the first six years of her life in and out of hospital.

Ruby White of Wrexham.

Ruby was shielding during the pandemic and has felt so alone and isolated, not able to do the things she loves, not able to go to any groups such as riding at the Clwyd Special Riding Centre in Llanfynydd, where she loves to chat with the volunteers.

Sharon Roberts, project lead for the F Jones Initiative, said: "Despite all of these things, last Christmas Ruby decided she wanted to bake cookies for the homeless. She bought all the ingredients with her pocket money, baked the cookies herself and gave them to her mum to take for the homeless people.

"Ruby suffers with anxiety, which the pandemic has made much worse and she was very anxious about going back to school. Happily, she had her first Covid vaccination in September and is now back at St Joseph’s school with her brilliant friends.

"Ruby is however facing another challenge this month as she is due to go into Alder Hey children’s hospital for another operation.

"Ruby’s mum tells us how Ruby is the most selfless, lovable little girl you could ever meet. She never moans or complains when she has to have all her treatments and medications and that she really doesn’t realise how amazing she is.

"We hope that by being the first recipient of our recognition award, for bravery and kindness, always thinking of others, Ruby will believe herself, that she is amazing too!"

The initiative will celebrate more Wrexham community stars over the next year.

Jon Roberts of Wrexham Lager.

Jon Roberts, one of the directors at Wrexham Lager, said: "We are running a competition to launch it, that we hope will inspire people to get involved.

"We thought what better way to shine a positive light on Wrexham, than to give people the chance to showcase their talent or publicly highlight someone amazing.

The project is on on Twitter @fjonesinit, Instagram @fjones_initiative and Facebook @fjonesinitiative