A candlelit ceremony has been held to honour the life of Margaret Grant MBE, the Dundonian who founded the Brittle Bone Society.
Margaret, 87, from Dundee, founded the charity in 1968 to support people like her with the rare bone condition Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI).
She received an honorary doctorate from Dundee University in 2018, the year of the charity’s 50th anniversary.
A funeral service was held on December 18 at Coldside Parish Church but it was only attended by close family and friends because of coronavirus restrictions.
However, the charity received hundreds of messages of condolences for the family and decided to organise a digital ceremony so mourners could pay their respects remotely.
More than 60 people signed in to light a candle in memory of Margaret.
Among the attendees were her husband David and daughter Yvonne, as well as staff and board members from the BBS.
Professor Nick Bishop, a trustee and healthcare professional from Sheffield Childrens Hospital for continued and better healthcare and research.
The family intend to hold a formal memorial service when Covid-19 rules allow.
Donations have poured in for the BBS in lieu of flowers and the total sits at nearly £2,000.
Margaret was named Dundee citizen of the year in 1975.
Her other achievements included the Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation award in 1982, for hosting the first international conference for people with OI, and the Tunstall Telecoms National caring award in 1988.
Margaret was born with OI and realised at an early age that there was little support for people like her. She also identified a lack of knowledge among medical professionals for diagnosis and treatment.
When her daughter Yvonne was also born with OI, Margaret noticed little had changed since her youth and established the BBS.
She was made an MBE in 1989 as a result of her charitable work.
The society now has thousands of members and supporters and works closely with NHS specialised hospitals and world leading healthcare professionals throughout the UK and beyond.
