£56,000 gift from beyond the grave

A pensioner disabled during the Second World War has left his entire estate to the Christie Hospital.

Harry Hanson (92), formerly of Eustace Street, Chadderton, left £56,443 to the cancer-fighting centre.

Mr Hanson, who was born in Busk, on the Oldham-Chadderton border, died on October 1 last year.

He was a widower — his wife Ethel died from heart disease in 1985 — and they had no children.

Mr Hanson went overseas in December, 1941, and was shot in June, 1943.

He had no kneecap in one leg, and for the last five years he was cared for at the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association home in Blackpool.

John Bremend, legacy officer at the Christie, said: “We are extremely grateful to Mr Hanson for this legacy. It is incredibly generous and the money will be used to further vital cancer research here at the Christie and provide additional services for our cancer patients.

“Leaving a gift in your will — whatever the size — can make a real difference, working towards a time when future generations can live without the shadow of cancer.”

Last year the Christie, one of the leading cancer centres in Europe which registered 12,500 new patients and treated 40,000 patients, received over 200 legacies ranging from £50 to £800,000.

To find out more about leaving a gift in a will, contact John Bremend at the Christie on 0161-918 7424 or john.bremend@christie.nhs.uk