A DINAS Powys woman that has raised more than £50,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust is among the finalists at the inaugural St David Awards.

Cancer survivor Lara Cowpe, an Olympic torchbearer, has been chosen as a finalist in the Citizenship category for her work in raising funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust Unit at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff – the only one of its kind in Wales.

To date, Lara has raised more than £50,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust, with more than £11,000 raised in 2013.

Lara Cowpe, who is also chairwoman of charity collective Teen Spirit, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma at just seven years old. Ever since she has been fundraising and raising awareness of the cause.

The finalists were announced by the First Minister Carwyn Jones at a ceremony sponsored by the communication experts, Golley Slater, at the Wales Millennium Centre, last week.

The St David Awards scheme is unique to Wales. It recognises the achievements of people from all walks of life, regardless of their origin or background, each nominated by members of the public.

The First Minister said: “I am told that picking finalists from the many worthy entrants received was no easy task, but the people who have been chosen exemplify the reason I established the awards. I wanted to be able to recognise the extraordinary achievements made by the people of Wales, people who I meet regularly during my visits across the country, people who go above and beyond to make a difference to life in Wales.

“I do not envy the task of picking the winner of each category, although all are deserving and should feel very proud of their achievements. I now look forward to the actual awards ceremony in March.”

There are eight award categories for which people were nominated: Bravery, Citizenship, Culture, Enterprise, Innovation and Technology, Sport, International, and Young Person.

There is also a ninth award, the First Minister’s Special Award, which will be chosen personally by the First Minister and for which people could not be nominated.

The finalists were decided by an independent panel of judges, chaired by Lord David Rowe Beddoe.

The winner for each category will be announced in an award ceremony at the Royal Welsh College for Music and Drama in Cardiff on Thursday, March 13, which will be televised by S4C, with English commentary available.