Esther Brown
Esther was a founding member of our community garden and her generous spirit was central to making the community garden a welcoming and inclusive place. For many years she also helped to run our community café and served on our board of charity trustees.
Esther was an exceptionally kind, compassionate and caring individual who dedicated her life to helping others. Through her voluntary work she touched the lives and hearts of countless people. We miss her terribly.
She was a founding member of our community garden, but more than this she was the spirit of the place. She was as much a part of the garden as the trees, the plants, the birds and the soil. We remember her most as the person who greeted new visitors to the garden with the warmest of smiles. She would always be on the lookout for people hovering by the gate, nervous about coming into the garden for the first time. And she would go out of her way to beckon them in and make them feel especially welcome.
Her murder has left so many people in our community heartbroken. The fact that her killer was released so soon after another violent rape, has added immeasurably to people’s grief and distress. It’s just heart-breaking to think that her death could and should have been avoided.
Over the coming weeks and months, we will be honouring Esther's wonderful way of being through encouraging acts of kindness, compassion and collaboration. Her memory will long live on in all that we do.
Community Survey Report
Click here to download our report examining the impact of Esther’s murder on our community.
Esther Brown Memorial
Creating a Legacy for Esther
We'd like to thank all those who donated to our Memorial Fund for Esther. The fund which raised over £9000 is now closed, but you can still donate to our general funds through our donations page:
The Memorial Fund enabled us to create a new rockery and wildlife section at our community garden. This included a specially commissioned memorial stone that also acts an ornate bird-bath, wildflowers and a specially commissioned. The memorial stone was unveiled at a memorial event held on 12th June 2022. A huge thanks goes to Ian Newton for his work on this beautiful memorial.
We are also currently creating a high quality memorial bench which will be added to the central area of the garden.
Residual Funds after the costs of the physical memorial are met, will be used to:
- maintain and enhance Woodlands Community Garden as a place where both people and nature can flourish.
- buy food and other essential supplies to support people in need via Woodlands Community Cafe.
“Sometimes the powerful gravity of stone is useful; to anchor our grief, our loss and our struggle to understand the ravages of our lives. Here also is the acceptance of water; how it supports us, how it flows through us, how it throws back the light and helps us reflect. The golden Sun is symbol of our warmth and passion. The fire that is in all of us. The sun that returns every day, whether we see it, or it is hidden. he bird is for innocent energy; hopping about, turning over leaves, watching us, lifting up into the air. A symbol for gratitude and pure friendliness. Qualities that Esther embodied. The leaves speak of Autumn, of the shedding of what is no longer needed, they speak of loss. The acorn of course is a promise, a potential, a hope. This stone in its entirety is a symbol of thanks for Esther’s life.”
(Ian Newton, June 2022)
Tribute
Click here to read our tribute to Esther, read by our manager Tim Cowen at her funeral (14th July 2021)
Interview with Esther
2020 marked the 10th anniversary of our Community Garden. To celebrate this milestone we interviewed 10 key people involved in the formation of the garden, including Esther.
