Tribute to Lady Hilkka Brooking

Saint Francis Hospice pays tribute to Lady Hilkka Brooking 

Saint Francis Hospice pays tribute to Lady Hilkka Brooking whose kindness, compassion and commitment were felt by many and will be remembered for years to come.  

Lady Hilkka, wife of West Ham and England legend Sir Trevor Brooking for over 55 years, became the hospice’s patron in 2018. From the very beginning, she brought warmth, humour and a sense of purpose to everything she did for the hospice.

In an interview shortly after she became patron, Lady Hilkka spoke of her joy at giving back to the local community: 

“I personally feel that we are having lots of fun with the events and raising money for such a good cause. I think it’s important for people to enjoy the events, so they come back again and again. The bottom line is to see money go to such a good cause.” 

Lady Hilkka attended numerous fundraising events over the years—especially our Ladies Lunches, where she inspired others to give generously.

During the pandemic, when fundraising events were cancelled, Lady Hilkka called on the community to help ensure the hospice could continue to care for people and families who needed its specialist palliative and end of life care services.  

“Our Hospice does tremendous work for people who need us at a desperate time of their life,” she said. “We need to find £8.5 million a year to survive, but our income has taken a real hit from the coronavirus pandemic. Everyone can still help us reach that fundraising target.”

“Our heartfelt condolences go out to Sir Trevor and their family during this time of great loss,” said Grazina Berry, Chief Executive Officer at Saint Francis Hospice. 

“She was incredibly kind and compassionate, and she believed in our mission to provide the best end of life care to everyone in our community and did everything she could to raise awareness of our services and support our fundraising initiatives. 

“On behalf of everyone at Saint Francis Hospice, we extend our deepest gratitude to Lady Hilkka for her wonderful support over the years.