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A life devoted to achieving the greater good for others
• EARLIER this year a close friend was struck down with cancer. Her health deteriorated rapidly and she died at the start of this month. I remember feeling, after seeing her for the last time, what a privilege it was to have had the opportunity to say goodbye.
This was further brought home to me when I received the awful news of Lisa Pontecorvo’s tragic death. It was a shock of a very different kind and it takes a great deal of coming to terms with.
Lisa was so full of energy, all of it channelled into achieving the greater good for others and not herself.
As a keen cyclist, Lisa would have been justified in campaigning for road safety measures for cyclists. The problem of cyclists being unseen from lorries is well documented and several fatalities have been down to this cause. The irony is that, had Lisa pursued such a campaign with the vigour she applied to restoring Edward Square, to securing a heritage based regeneration of the P&O site at King’s Cross and countless others, she might still be here to continue campaigning.
The tragedy is that Lisa was one of the majority of cyclists who obey the rules – she dismounted whenever she went into pedestrian mode – and there is a persistent unease that more women cyclists have been killed on this account. Mainly male cyclists who endanger others may be reducing the risk to themselves.
The best way of remembering Lisa must be to renew our efforts to secure the public benefits she was working to achieve, such as pedestrian access across King’s Cross station.
We also need to start taking road safety seriously. Ten people die on the roads every day, yet letters calling for safety measures are outnumbered by those of disgruntled drivers whose motoring or parking “rights” they perceive to be under threat. This is as close as we can come to saying goodbye to our friend.
ANDREW BOSI
Chairman, Islington Society
• MANY of us in Islington have been deeply affected by the unexpected loss of our dear friend Lisa Pontecorvo.
She campaigned tirelessly for our area, from the moment she arrived in Islington two decades ago. But she did not just campaign; she had a desire to make the Cally a better place for all, at the same time giving it a Pontecorvo touch. Edward Square is an example of this – a piece of land which could have been lost to development, which was transformed into an exciting public space.
The Rottweiler (an epithet she approved of) would not let go until she achieved a positive result, whether by fighting against bad development or fighting for quality and equality. For many years she was the mainstay of the Cally Shopfront Awards.
She had both a vision of how life could be improved in our neighbourhood, and the determination and success to make the vision a reality.
Lisa was a private person, and did much of her work behind the scenes. She was not interested in fancy titles or power positions. And her work was not limited just to Islington and King’s Cross.
Her energies extended to Switzerland, where she spent part of her time, and other places and people beyond her immediate neighbourhood. A celebration of her achievements will take place in Edward Square, and may draw some of these wider interests together. Details will follow shortly.
While she is no longer physically able to campaign with us, we will continue in her spirit to keep what she created alive. I miss her already, as do many others, and the pages of the Tribune will never be the same without her vision and her achievements.
CLLR RUPERT PERRY
Labour, Caledonian ward
• I WAS moved by the little service held for Lisa Pontecorvo on Monday afternoon by cyclists in Holloway Road. It was very well attended by some 50-60 people.
Lisa Pontecorvo was a political opponent and a friend. While we were occasionally on opposite sides, we both had a passion for green space, old buildings and conservation generally. If you disagreed with Lisa it was always without malice and did not affect the basic friendship of many, many years.
She was a fighter for good causes for the benefit of the community and the term “enlightened self-interest” did not apply to her. She will be much missed. Islington can ill-afford to lose people of her calibre and dedication.
MARGOT DUNN
(Former Lib Dem councillor)
N5
• THE informal memorial ceremony on Monday for Lisa Pontecorvo pointed out how widespread Lisa’s interests and projects were. The first question people asked of one another was: “And how did you know Lisa?” It emerged that most of us had no idea of the extent of her volunteer commitments and efforts (for art, music, children, green spaces, urban development, archiving, safe bicycling).
Socially, Lisa would definitely mention her latest projects – with great enthusiasm. But did any of us know the whole Lisa? She will be missed by many.
NATALIE TEICH
N5
• LISA Pontecorvo was a unique and irreplaceable person. She always took a lively interest in the area, and in the process became something of a local treasure herself.
I’ve known Lisa for over a decade, ever since we were neighbours in Barnsbury, and even though we were in different political parties we always got on well. Lisa had a deep knowledge of the local environment, a deep passion for protecting it and expressed it in forthright terms!
Lisa was a good friend with a kind heart; people soon learned that her sweet nature and sometimes slightly eccentric air were matched with an iron commitment to her causes.
While Edward Square will be Lisa’s legacy, I’m sure her many friends will want to see a personal memorial to her, maybe in Thornhill Square, or Edward Square itself. She will be very sadly missed.
Lisa was an experienced cyclist, in fact rarely seen without her bike, and knew Islington’s roads well. I hope that the full accident report will come through quickly, and Transport for London and Islington Council make sure any recommended changes to the junction where she died are made asap.
That’s not the tribute we wanted to pay Lisa, but it may be a necessary one.
BRIDGET FOX
Lib Dem parliamentary candidate, Islington South and Finsbury
• SO many people were grateful for Lisa Pontecorvo’s boundless energy or inspired by her enthusiasm and ingenuity… and there are quite a few others who over many years were ferociously lobbied and harangued until they did the right thing.
As we prepare for Lisa’s funeral, thoughts have also turned to how we might celebrate her life and make a fitting memorial to her work.
Among Lisa’s many passions was Edward Square. Without her constant endeavours, this place of tranquillity in a dense and bustling neighbourhood would not have materialised.
A group of local people, including councillor Rupert Perry and Fr Jim Kennedy, are going to organise a commemorative event at Edward Square in late October. This will celebrate with words, music and visual arts all the things that made Lisa’s life such a joy and achievement.
We shall also begin a consultation within the neighbourhood and beyond to decide on some permanent physical remembrance of Lisa’s life in the square and will welcome all ideas.
CLLR PAUL CONVERY
Labour, Caledonian ward
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