The campaigner at the forefront of bringing a life saving dialysis unit to Welshpool has died just months after her efforts came to fruition.
Trudy Baynes Hill, lived in Aberhafesp, near Newtown, but was a well known figure in Welshpool following her 10-year fight for kidney patients in Montgomeryshire to avoid arduous journeys to Shropshire for treatment.
Her dreams came true in December when money was confirmed for a temporary unit in Victoria Memorial Hospital in Welshpool which is seen as a stepping stone to a permanent service, expected to open next year.
And this weekend, fellow campaigner and close friend Glyn Davies, MP, described her as was an "inspiration".
He said: "Trudy was a very special person, who overcame huge setbacks to her health, carrying on with a mixture of determination and cheerfulness. I first knew her about 20 years ago, when we both worked at the Development Board for Rural Wales, and I got to know her well as we both campaigned for a renal dialysis unit in Montgomeryshire.
“When we established the Powys Branch of Kidney Foundation Wales, Trudy became Chair, while I've became secretary. She underwent several radical operations, including a heart and lung transplant, and once died for several minutes before being resuscitated.
“Recently, she was forced to dialyses as her health deteriorated. But Trudy was unstoppable, and was always full of an incredible cheerfulness, no matter how ill she must have felt. My sympathies go to out to her family who will be feeling a great sense of loss. I will miss the morning coffees in the Exchange in Newtown and the Old Station in Welshpool, when we discussed renal matters and put the world to rights. Montgomeryshire has lost an inspirational figure and those who knew her have lost a good friend.”