Son launches appeal for 7/7 cancer victim bus driver
THE son of a bus driver who ferried victims of the 7/7 bombings to hospital is raising money for charity in memory of his mum. Vivien Shield (former name Barker) took commuters injured by the Aldgate tube bomb to The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel
THE son of a bus driver who ferried victims of the 7/7 bombings to hospital is raising money for charity in memory of his mum.
Vivien Shield (former name Barker) took commuters injured by the Aldgate tube bomb to The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.
But Vivien, who worked out of the Bow Garage in Fairfield Road, stopped driving a London bus after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
Vivien, who lived in Rainhill Way, Bow, died from cancer last November. She previously lived in Stepney for about ten years.
Vivien was driving a number 15 bus, when police ordered her to transport those injured by the bomb, which went off on a circle line train travelling from Liverpool Street to Aldgate. But normally she could be found behind the wheel of number eight bus.
Before her death Vivien was awarded medals for her bravery on 7/7 by former London Ken Livingstone, as well as her employer Stagecoach.
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Now her son, Scott Barker, is planning to cycle nearly 1,000 miles to raise money for St Joseph's Hospice, Mare St, Hackney, which cared for Vivien during the final weeks of her life.
Scott said: "She always put others first right till the end. I thought the hospice was a bad place to put my mum. Well hands up how wrong was I! -The staff at St Josephs are all sent from above and are angels on this planet, and will exceed any care out there."
Scott has just started training for his challenge which will see him cycling from Lands End in Cornwall to John O'Groats in Scotland on July 10.
Every other day he cycles 30 to 40 miles through Millwall Park on the Isle of Dogs, where he lives with his wife Sarah and their children.
Vivien left behind two children including Scott as well as seven grandchildren.
www.justgiving.com/scottbarker1
