Tributes paid to community volunteer who helped others across Hastings and Bexhill

The family of a community stalwart, who died after a short battle with cancer, have this week paid tribute to her.
Liz O'Brien SUS-190416-153031001Liz O'Brien SUS-190416-153031001
Liz O'Brien SUS-190416-153031001

Liz O’Brien, who was well-known in Bexhill, Little Common and Hastings because of her involvement with charities, passed away aged 76 last Wednesday (April 10).

Her husband Pat, who is president of the RAFA’s 1066 branch, said: “The community lost a ‘can do’ person, who gave more than 20 years of service to many local and national charitable and social activities.

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“Soon after arriving to live permanently in Cooden in 1996 she volunteered to work for SSAFA (the Armed Forces Charity) and, in due course, became the divisional secretary of the Hastings & Rother branch for some years before taking on responsibility for organising training of volunteers in the Sussex branch.

“Other interests included being chairman for a while of the Hastings branch of the National Design & Fine Arts Society (NADFAS) which is now known as The Arts Society. Her next venture was to become chairman of the Little Common Voluntary Library for several years.

“It must be said her main interest was with people and especially those with whom she worked in SSAFA. Time and time again she went out of her way to assist those at the margins of society. She was a persistent and effective advocate for people in need of help to cope with bureaucracy for whatever reason.

“By her open, kind and compassionate manner she had the ability to put people at ease and assist them towards a better future or at least to be able to understand the reasons for the limitations on their expectations.

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“She was a woman of many parts, whose life was foreshortened by a virulent strain of cancer that claimed her after seven short months. She will be greatly missed by all those who knew her over the years and especially by her family, including her much-loved grandchildren, who were her pride and joy.”

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