Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Memorial shield for popular Isabel
THE sister of an Arbroath woman who died in March has said she would have “loved” the plans for a plaque to be erected in her honour.
Isabel Meikle died on March 13, aged 57, following a battle with cancer.
And now, her former colleagues at the town’s Bruce House have launched a fundraiser to raise cash for an Isabel Meikle memorial shield that will honour and celebrate the life of their “much-loved colleague and friend”.
Christina Crighton, Isabel’s sister, said the memorial would be a fitting tribute.
The 55-year-old said: “I really like the idea of it and am happy to see that possibly going ahead.
“My sister, if she were still alive, would have loved it.
“She was lovely – sometimes she could be so funny and she always, always talked to everybody when she was in town.
“She had a heart of gold and would help anybody out.
“If she had friends and they had a wee daughter or son, she used to give them pennies. She was always doing things like that and was always so generous.
“She worked at Bruce House and did volunteer care work at the Salvation Army charity shop too.”
The JustGiving fundraiser was launched a month ago and, despite an initial target of £100, it has significantly exceeded expectations with £797 donated so far.
Christina said: “I think that is absolutely brilliant – the community loved Isabel. It didn’t matter where she went, it would be ‘hiya’ to this person, ‘hiya’ to that one.
“I used to say, ‘who’s that?’ and she’d say ‘that’s one of my friends who I speak to all the time’. The pandemic would have driven her nuts, knowing she wouldn’t have been able to get out and about.
“On a Thursday, Friday and Saturday she used to come up to my house to visit and then would stay at her own place for the rest of the week.
“We used to go out every Saturday to the cafes and have a cup of coffee.
“She liked some music – not a great deal – but she loved listening to the bagpipes and she used to come up to my house and put my telly on without asking. Me and Isabel were very, very close. I always stood up for her and defended her.”
Isabel was also actively involved in the Bruce House 10k charity run, which was first established to raise cash to support her participation in the 2013 Tayside Special Olympics.
Writing on their JustGiving page, the organisers of the fundraiser, who plan to erect the plaque at the council building, said: “The first Bruce House 10k charity run was to raise money to support Isabel to participate in the Special Olympics. Over the years Isabel was such a big part of the event and many people have completed the run with a cheer and a medal from her.
“Isabel was a much-loved colleague and friend who had a great sense of humour and always took time to talk. Monies donated will pay for an Isabel Meikle memorial shield to honour and celebrate the life of our much-loved colleague and friend.”
To donate to the fund go to justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ brucehouse10k.