Yapton woman creating a 'lasting legacy' died of brain tumour

An inquest heard that mother-of-two Rosemarie van Driel was just 43 when she was diagnosed with the tumour in January last year.

Educated at Chichester High School for Girls, Rosemary '“ known as Rosie to family and friends '“ was trained as a nurse at Guy's Hospital.

She and her husband Hugo, who is the pastor of Yapton Free Church, were married at St Mary's Church, Walberton, where she is now buried.

She later become part of the nursing team at St Wilfrid's Hospice, which is where she was working when she learned of her tumour.

Five years ago with her husband, she helped to establish an orphanage in Nepal and together they spent many hours raising money and providing support for the children and encouraging people of all ages in Yapton to support the charity.

An inquest into her death held last week in Chichester heard she had first started to experience problems at the tail end of a trip to the orphanage with her husband in November 2007. She had been unwell two days before the couple were due to leave for home.

Assistant coroner for West Sussex, Michael Kendall was told that although news about the tumour had been a great shock to her, Mrs van Driel had coped very well.

As her illness progressed, she had an increase in her medication and in 2008 started to mention suicide and friends and family kept a close eye on her.

On July 2, her husband had gone to an Alpha meeting, and she was to be kept company by a friend. Mrs van Driel later phoned her friend to say she would be going to bed early.

Her husband later found her '“ she had died after suffocating herself.

Mr Kendall recorded a verdict that Mrs van Driel had taken her own life.

Mrs van Driel was described as a 'wonderful wife, a fantastic mother, and a beautiful daughter, sister and friend' and as a 'remarkable' young woman during her funeral in July.

A moving obituary in the Yapton newsletter said: "The children who have so benefited and will benefit in the years to come from Rosie's commitment to the orphanage, may not realise it but undoubtedly their lives will have been transformed and enhanced by the efforts of this remarkable woman who had left such a lasting legacy."

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