Memories of Moya Cole: Barbara Irvine

It’s been over 45 years since Barbara Irvine last had an interaction with Moya Cole but to this day the St Ann’s Hospice founder has had a lifelong lasting impression on her.

Barbara first met Moya Cole when her mother was being treated for cervical cancer in the Christie Hospital.

“Moya nursed my mother in the Christie. For me personally, she was wonderful,” Barbara said.

“My mum, who was in and out of hospital, thought the world of her. She was a consultant but a hands-on type from what I saw when I visited,” she added.

In 1967, Moya Cole, and the then Bishop of Manchester, the Rt Rev Dr William Greer, had an idea for a hospice for the people of Greater Manchester. Together, they worked for 18 months to win over businesses and the public to their cause.

Two years later, St Ann’s Hospice was founded in 1969, and was officially opened by the Queen Mother in 1971 with a second site opening in Little Hulton in 1979.

Moya went on to be Deputy Chair of St Ann’s in 1977 and later Chair in 1983, and was awarded an OBE in 1990.

Barbara discussed her story of Moya Cole with a member of the St Ann’s Hospice team when she visited an event to update the public on the ongoing construction of a new hospice site in Heald Green.

On the new building, Barbara said it is going to be “absolutely fantastic” once it is complete.

“Seeing the new build construction gave me a lovely warm feeling that at long last we’ll have a facility that can cater to the needs of the area,” she said.