Tributes paid to "fearsome" Dudley charity campaigner
PEOPLE across the borough have been mourning the loss of the figurehead of a popular Dudley charity that champions disability rights.
Tina Boothroyd, chairperson of Access in Dudley, died in hospital on January 31 - the charity has confirmed.
For more than 20 years, Tina - who was a founding member of the charity – had campaigned tirelessly on behalf of people with disabilities to help make their lives better.
Taking to Facebook to announce the sad news, a spokesperson for Access in Dudley said Tina was the 'beating heart' of the charity and they added: 'She worked tirelessly to help disabled people in Dudley over many years since AID was setup in 2004. It was her passion and her life's work.
'She was a true friend and fought your corner to the last, even in hospital she was always thinking of others.'
Access in Dudley was awarded the King's Award for Voluntary Service, the MBE for voluntary groups, just a few weeks ago in November 2024 in recognition of the importance of its work in campaigning to help people with disabilities to access buildings, transport and services across the Dudley borough and beyond.
This came a year after Tina herself was awarded the diversity in the community award at the 2023 Dudley Borough Community Awards.
The Mayor of Dudley, Councillor Hilary Bills, who is raising money for Access in Dudley throughout her mayoral year, paid tribute to gutsy charity champion Tina, describing her as a 'formidable fighter for people with a disability'.
She said: 'Her knowledge and leadership will be sadly missed by Access in Dudley. It is up to us all to carry on Tina's passion and to maintain Access in Dudley's work.'
Former Dudley mayor and councillor Steve Waltho, a patron of the charity, said he was 'devastated' to hear of the loss of Tina, who lived in Halesowen with her husband.
He described her as one of his 'charity heroes' and said: 'There was something about Tina. She was such a leader.
'She had multiple disabilities of her own that she had to cope with. She was an absolute inspiration to so many people.'
He said many people didn't know she had gone into hospital in December with a heart issue and that news of her death had left friends and colleagues at Access in Dudley in total 'devastation'.
Many people across the borough have paid tribute to Tina, who was in her early 60s, and who had been looking forward to officially receiving the prestigious King's Award on behalf of Access in Dudley at a ceremony scheduled for April this year.
Former leader of Dudley Council, Anne Millward, described her as a 'legend' – while Dudley Labour councillor Cathryn Bayton said she was a 'fearsome campaigner'.
Fellow charity champion Rachael Gardener, founder of the Stourbridge based We Love Carers charity, said she was very sorry to hear the sad news about Tina and added: 'She stalwartly fought for the rights of our disabled within Dudley.'
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