Maidstone loses a 'charity hero'

1.03.56pm GMT Wed 29th Nov 2006

Maidstone mourns the loss of tireless fundraiser Peggy Wood who has died at Maidstone Hospital aged 81.

Known to everyone as Peggy, she began fundraising in 1981 when her grandson was diagnosed with leukaemia at the age of two and a half. Appalled by the lack of medical equipment available to treat him, Peggy began her campaign to raise money to equip Maidstone Hospital with life-saving equipment for cancer sufferers.

Peggy Wood helped thousands of cancer sufferers

Over the years she raised more that £3.5million and in 2004 had a state of the art treatment centre - the Peggy Wood Breast Care Centre - named after her to mark her achievements.