HETTYNIE PETERS

Published on 28/07/2011

HETTYNIE Viola Peters died of cancer aged 74. Ms Peters (pictured) was born in November 1937 on the Caribbean island of St Vincent, where her family owned land. She came to Britain to study nursing in Canterbury before moving to live in Gloucester Place, Westminster. She delivered thousands of babies into the world as a midwife at St Marys Paddington and Marylebones Samaritan Hospital for Women. In the early 1990s she relocated to Hackney living firstly in Balls Pond Road, later moving to Lansdowne Drive and Malvern Road. Hettie quickly became involved in community affairs in the east London borough and embarked on a career in politics, campaigning for the rights of children. Despite server health problems - lupus, diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis - she was a prolific activist organising many community events for children and the elderly. In 1993 Hettie helped establish the Hackney Womens Centre and other charities including the one closest to her heart, the Children and Young Peoples Foundation, supported by the then Metropolitan Police commander Sir John Stephens which she launched in Scotland Yard in 2004. She also supported the reopening of the London Fields Lido, campaigned on housing issues, organised a childrens tea party to introduce children to the work of the local council and won many commendations and awards for her campaigning and community work. Hettie was elected as a Labour Councillor for Queensbridge in 1994 and served until 2002. She held various positions within the Council including Chair of Social Services, Deputy Mayor etc, later standing as an independent candidate for the Mayor of Hackney. As Chair of Social Services she stood up for race equality and childrens rights introducing major changes which positively affected the lives of local young people. Hettie also chaired the Hackney Police Consultative Group where she campaigned to break down the mistrust between young people and the Police. She organised a meeting of Holly Street residents to mobilise residents against the drugs trade in the area. This led directly to Operation Gamma, a crackdown on traffickers. Hettie also played a prominent part in the campaign to prove that the life sentence given to Sam Hallam, the 22 year-old from Hoxton, was a miscarriage of justice and she supported the Levy family following the murder of their son Robert. Hettie died in University College London Hospital on June 15 2011. She is survived by four siblings who live in Canada and the United States.

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