WOMEN from across Dumfries and Galloway gathered for a special lunch last Friday. The Crichton Foundation’s annual Women of Dumfries and Galloway fundraiser took place at the Easterbrook Hall, attended by 160 guests. Guest speaker was Victoria Cummock, founder of the Pan Am 103 Lockerbie Legacy Foundation and the Lockerbie Memorial Church Museum. She told the audience about her work as a campaigner, both globally and locally, since her husband John was killed in the 1988 disaster, aged 38. [caption id="attachment_68701" align="alignnone" width="680"]
SPECIAL GUEST . . . Victoria Cummock, right, with Vicky Jardine-Paterson[/caption] Said Victoria: “I made a promise to John to do the things he had left undone, starting with raising our three children, aged three, four and six. “I pledged to become his voice in the quest for truth, accountability and justice and ensure all those that died did not die in vain.” In the last 38 years she has made it her mission to achieve more humane treatment for disaster victims in America and to protect the flying public globally. She added: “I vowed to embody the words of our favourite poem, Success, and ‘leave the world a bit better’.” Victoria also paid tribute to the local response after the bombing, adding: “For the 190 American victims’ families, what was most unfathomable was that there was utter silence from the US Government in the days that followed this tragedy. “We were left to watch TV to gather any information possible. It was the beginning of a surreal nightmare. “What we did see by watching TV was the unprecedented response by 100s of first responders as they walked shoulder to shoulder in bitterly cold conditions, searching to recover our dead. It became our own true beacon of hope for humanity. Your efforts here were a tangible source of comfort and became our inspiration to move on with our lives.” An official vote of thanks was given by former police chief constable Kate Thomson. [caption id="attachment_68702" align="alignnone" width="680"]
Helen Bonn and Kate Thomson, right[/caption]
