Helen Margaret Taylor Thompson , née Laurie Walker (7 August 1924 – 6 September 2020) was a British aid worker who co-founded Europe's first AIDS hospice.
Life
Helen served in
Special Operations Executive during World War Two, signing the official secrets act aged nineteen and receiving and sending coded messages to agents in the field.
In 1952, Helen became a member of the board of the
Mildmay Mission Hospital
Mildmay Mission Hospital is a specialist voluntary charitable hospital and rehabilitation centre in East London. It is the only hospital in the United Kingdom specialising in the care of HIV/AIDS and related conditions, and the only one in Europe ...
.
[ The hospital had been founded by Catherine Pennefather in 1877 in a converted warehouse in Old Nichol slums behind ]Shoreditch Church
Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area.
In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...
. It was meant to be closed in the 1980's, but Helen led the campaign to keep it open and, inspired by Jesus' love for the outcast, converted it into Europe's first AIDS hospital, in the face of strong opposition.[
In 2000, Helen founded the charity 'Education Saves Lives', designed to education children in the developing world about health issues.
]
Recognition and later life
In 2018, she was chosen as one of the BBC's '' 100 Women'' who have made an impact.
Helen died in September 2020, at the age of 96.[ ]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Helen Taylor
1924 births
2020 deaths
British charity and campaign group workers
Officers of the Order of the British Empire