Extraordinary LIVES
FLO’S zest for life and willingness to try new things made her one of a kind. She simply didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘No’, especially when it came to helping others. Born in Rothesay on the Isle of Bute, she had a happy childhood with her parents Jean and Angus, and siblings Sheena and Gus. She left school at 16 and qualified as a nurse at Rothesay’s Victoria
Hospital, where she received the Nurse of the Year award. She spent most of her working life on the cardiology wards of Stobhill Hospital in Glasgow. Flo was cheeky, courageous and compassionate. Her nickname was ‘New York Girl’ because of her lifelong passion for the city. She always rose to a challenge, from skydiving and scuba diving to running marathons in London and New York and abseiling down the clocktower at
Stobhill Hospital, all to raise funds for good causes. The charities she supported included Macmillan Cancer Support, Deafblind Scotland, Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation. She also took part in the Kilt Walk, Moon Walk and Santa Dash. Her biggest adventure was volunteering in Rwanda and the Republic of Congo for the Scottish Christian charity Comfort International, which works with genocide survivors, street children, displaced people and child soldiers. Flo helped to build safe spaces for those in desperate need. If she’d been able, undoubtedly she would have stayed in Africa and nursed in a hospital. Flo’s life was tragically cut short after being diagnosed with mesothelioma, an incurable cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.
FLO McEWAN, born September 8, 1963; died August 30, 2020, aged 56.