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Bob Inglis wrote a A Song for Lisa for the event |
A final farewell, in garden Lisa loved
Friends pay tribute to campaigner at square she fought to transform into urban haven
CHILDHOOD friends, campaigners and well-wishers crammed into Islington’s Edward Square on Friday to say a final farewell to much-loved community activist Lisa Pontecorvo, who died in a road accident in September.
More than 100 people filled a marquee in the centre of Ms Pontecorvo’s beloved square, transformed over the years largely thanks to her hard work.
Labour MP Emily Thornberry, councillors from Islington and Camden, neighbours, friends and members of the many campaigns and groups Ms Pontecorvo supported braved a chilly Friday afternoon to pay their respects.
Children from Blessed Sacrament and Copenhagen primary schools helped open the event by joining in A Song For Lisa, penned and performed by King’s Cross songwriter Rob Inglis.
Caledonian ward Labour councillor Paul Convery said: “We’re here in Edward Square because this is the place Lisa fought for and campaigned for.”
Close friend Sadie Lambert paid tribute to Lisa’s spirited efforts to transform Edward Square, adding: “All I can say is if there were more people in the world like Lisa it would be a peaceful world, and I miss her.”
Lindsey Jackson, headteacher of Copenhagen School, said: “Lisa never ceased to amaze us. Some people say she was a rottweiler, I say a Jack Russell.”
Ms Pontecorvo would be remembered most of all “for her passion for the children in this area to have the best opportunities”, she added.
Ruth Kirk Wilson, who met Ms Pontecorvo when they were both studying at Oxford in 1963, recalled how, when she asked the campaigner to be godmother to one of her sons, she agreed on condition it was a “secular” role.
“She said once that her family always spoke Italian at home and for a long time she thought it was their own secret language. Life is not as rich without her,” she added:
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School pupil Grace Hollywell sang Mariah Carey’s Hero, and told the crowd: “She put everybody first and just loved this garden so much, the way a mum loves her children.”
Islington Society chairman Andrew Bosi announced that a Lisa walk was being planned, taking in all the places she had a hand in saving and ending at Edward Square.
Ms Pontecorvo’s favourite musicians, from The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, played excerpts from Handel’s Music for Royal Fireworks and Water Music followed by a demonstration of Tudor dancing.
The afternoon ended with the unveiling of a plaque in Ms Pontecorvo’s honour, ensuring her name will forever be synonymous with Edward Square. |
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