In Memory of Anita Roddick

Several people from the Federation went to London to attend the memorial service for Emmaus Ambassador Dame Anita Roddick.

Two and half thousand people gathered in Westminster Hall to celebrate her life and work and to hear about the huge range of charities and organisations that she supported.

Malcolm Thorne from Emmaus Bristol said of the event;
“It will always be a sadness that Anita Roddick’s involvement with Emmaus was cut short, but in Bristol we have taken on board many of the suggestions she made when she visited us and we have seen the benefits. Anita was forever pleading for people to do something, just do something and to this end she inspired so many others. I came away from her memorial service knowing that there is so much more to do.”

Christine Squince from Brighton said;
“What came across during the service was the warmth and humour that Anita injected into her relationships with the organisations she and her husband worked with. Many colleagues spoke of her as a friend. She wanted to be remembered not as the founder of the Body Shop, but as an activist.”

After a memorial service that lasted over two hours, everyone present set off for a march along the South Bank to the Festival Hall accompanied by banners and music.

Published on 6th November, 2007

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