Dame Cicely Saunders OM, DBE
Dame Cicely Saunders died on July 14 2005 at St Christopher's Hospice in Lawrie Park Road. Dame Cicely lived in Sydenham and many of us will remember her as a friend or neighbour, or a work colleague. A very humane figure as she toured the wards of the hospice, a shy but, at six feet tall, slightly daunting woman with a lovely smile, she always found time to stop to talk to patients and their families.
St Christopher's Hospice, founded by Dame Cicely in 1967, was the first of the modern Hospice movement on which hundreds of others worldwide have since been modelled. Everyone who worked in the hospice, both staff and volunteers, treasured the hand written card from Dame Cicely, sent each year on the anniversary of their coming to St Christopher's, each with its own very personal message.
Her contribution to medicine has been widely honoured by universities both nationally and internationally, and her work has been recognised at the highest civil level in this country by her being created Dame of the British Empire in 1980, followed by the prestigious award of the Order of Merit in 1989. At the request of the Sydenham Society Lewisham Council bestowed the Freedom of Lewisham on Dame Cicely in March 2000.
A member of the Sydenham Society, with a car sticker inviting people to "Join the Sydenham Society" on her porch door, Dame Cicely frequently apologised that she was unable to attend meetings because of other commitments! News reached us that, as one of our earliest e-mail members, even during her last illness atSt Christopher's, she was able to provide full information to her visitors as to why they had suffered such dreadful traffic jams in the area on their way to see her!
Through the determination and commitment of Dame Cicely the modern hospice movement has made it possible for many sufferers to have a sustainable quality of life. She was a source of inspiration, pioneering courage and enterprise over many years. Dame Cicely Saunders was a very special local woman with an international reputation whose memory we, in Sydenham, are proud to salute.
Autumn 2005
Through the determination and commitment of Dame Cicely the modern hospice movement has made it possible for many sufferers to have a sustainable quality of life. She was a source of inspiration, pioneering courage and enterprise over many years. Dame Cicely Saunders was a very special local woman with an international reputation whose memory we, in Sydenham, are proud to salute.
Autumn 2005
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Dame Cicely Saunders
St Christopher's Hospice
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