Newspaper Clippings

Obituaries

Jewish Telegraph 21st November 2003,

LYNN - Victoria (Torti) Passed away after almost 21 years of bravely fighting against all the odds on Monday, November 17. We can’t believe that our precious little star, our breath of fresh air has been taken from us. She touched so many lives with her love and good nature. Her broken hearted but greatly privileged parents Susan and Bryan. Our lives will never be the same again. God bless.

She was with me all the time, together and apart. I never needed anyone else. My sister, my best friend in the world, my soulmate. You will always be remembered with a smile, because you brought so much happiness to all around you. You fought so bravely and always with a smile and your chin up. Words cannot come close to how I feel. I love you, Abbie, xxx.

Our brave, vivacious, inspirational sister and aunty. Our eyes will always see you, our arms will always hold you. Too soon Torti, too soon. We love you. Kerry, David and Charley Jo, xxx.

So very sadly missed by her loving grandma Hannelore and grandma Anne.

MIssing her bright sparkling eyes. Uncle Barry, Benita and all the girls

Victoria Our extraordinary cousin. Her courage and determination stand as an example to us all. Elissa and David and family in Israel.

My darling Torti It was an honour and a privilege to have been your boyfriend for too short a time. Rest now, your pain is no longer. Luv, Michael, x.

A very much loved precious friend. An inspiration to all who knew her. Gone from our midst, forever in our hearts. Barbara, Richard, Robert, Eiizabeth and Jonathan.

www.victorialynn.co.uk

LYNN — VICTORIA. A very dear friend, so sadly missed. Our thoughts are with you all. Aunty Betty, uncle Jack, Ros, Igal, Rebecca, Daniel, Rachel and Gemma.

LYNN - Victoria Words cannot convey such a tragic loss. Grandma Anne, Sarah, Jayne, Andrew and Danielle.

LYNN — VICTORIA. Taken too soon, but will never be forgotten. Our heartfelt condolences to all the family. Hilary, Jeff, Lisa and Mark.

LYNN - Victoria We will always remember with love and laughter our dear friend Torti You and your smile will remain in our hearts forever. Thanks for the memories. Love always. Tarryn, Rafi, Atarah, Mindy, Liran and Abby, Ittan and Nicola, Daniella and Laura, xxx.

LYNN - Victoria To our special friend Torti You are an inspiration to us all. Forever in our hearts and in our memories. We’ll love and miss you always. Rebecca, Abi, Julia, Nicola, Rachel and Leanne.

LYNN — VICTORIA. So brave. Forever in our hearts and thoughts. Irene, Bernie, Karen and Nicola.

LYNN - Victoria (Torti) “A shining star.” Her strength and courage was an encouragement to us all. Will be sadly missed by Louis, Sandra, Suzanne, Gemma and Molly.

LYNN — VICTORIA. You will always be remembered with great love and affection by Andrea, Ralph, Sara and Julia. Our hearts go out to Bryan, Susan, Kerry, Abby and all the family.

LYNN - Torti You meant the world to so many people. You will always be my special friend and my “doosh girl”. Words cannot describe how much I will miss you. I will never forget you. Dan

LYNN — Leeds JSOC send heartfelt condolences to the Lynn family upon the passing of VICTORIA. She will be greatly missed on Leeds University campus by us all.

LYNN — We are saddened beyond words at the untimely passing of darling VICTORIA (Torti). We have many happy memories to cherish. Our heartfelt sympathy goes to Susan, Bryan, Kerry, Abbie, David, grandmas and all the family. Stephanie, Raymond, Martin, Ali and Eli.

LYNN - Victoria. A special friend you were a gift from Hashem, beautiful, inspirational with a heart of gold. You will be missed so much. Our thoughts are with your dear family. Love you always. Caroline and Melanie.

LYNN - Victoria. Everyone at the Jewish Theatre Group share in the loss of their friend. Heartfelt condolences to all the family.

JT December 5th

LYNN - VICTORIA. The family have been overwhelmed by everyone's tributes and support for which they are very grateful.

Inspiring story of dying student

THE PARENTS OF a 20-year-old student who died on Monday have pledged to publish the autobiography she began after realising her life-long medical conditions were fatal.

Victoria Lynn, from Prestwich, who was taking a health studies degree at Leeds Metropolitan University, suffered from illness since birth and had major surgery when she was days old.

In l997, it became clear pulmonary hypertension would kill her, and preparing for the fact she would die, she began writing an account of her life. She was hoping to finish it by her 21st birthday, in January.

Though the memoirs reveal her illness and painful treatments, her friends in the Leeds student community were shocked by her death from a condition few people knew about, as she spoke about it only to her closest confidantes. "She was always out with friends and enjoying herself" said one student. Her father, Bryan, said "People were astonished when they heard she was ill."

Mother Susan said: "She was very modest and never wanted sympathy. The autobiography goes through her life and emotions when faced with enormous problems and scary treatments. You see how fun-loving she was and how she adored the people all around her.“

Victoria, who went to King David schools, was an enthusiastic member of the Jewish Theatre Group and regularly visited the elderly at Heathlands.

Her friends had begun preparing a book of anecdotes and stories to give her on her birthday, and her parents were planning a presentation in the style of "This is your Life."

She was also a keen poet, and some of her work will be published on a website her parents are launching today. It will also include a chat room for friends and sufferers of her condition.

The Pulmonary Hypertension Association is helping her parents to publish the autobiography.

In the last entry, read out at her funeral at Failsworth Cemetery on Tuesday, she wrote; "I always used to think that what happened in the past dictated precisely one's future.

"However, I now know that this is not always so. It if was, I would not be writing this today, sitting in my room at university telling my story. What does predict your future is how you live with the past and if I can overcome the hurdles I have done so far and still have a positive outlook for the future, then so can you."

Tragic student's tale of courage

MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS

Monday, 5th January 2004

A YOUNG student who died from a heart and lung condition has left a moving

account of her courageous battle against illness.

Victoria Lynn was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension at the age

of 14, a condition with an average life expectancy of three years.

But Victoria, from Prestwich, was determined to fight against her rare heart

and lung disorder. Against all the odds, five years on she was writing an

autobiography to inspire others.

Victoria's health started to improve with a new treatment and she planned to

publish her story on her 21st birthday to raise money for charity. But she

died in November, aged 20, after doctors suddenly discovered a blood clot

the size of an orange in her stomach.

Now her family plan to publish her autobiography to raise money for the

Pulmonary Hypertension Association which helped her through her illness.

Victoria had been dogged by health problems from an early age after being

born with a heart murmur, her spleen was missing and she had gut and liver

problems so serious that a simple cold or cough would have put her life in

danger.

When she was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension her parents were

devastated.

But she defied doctor's predictions and the popular King David High student

was able to lead a normal life partying with her friends, many of whom

didn't know of her illness.

Then at the age of 17, her health suddenly plummeted. She started coughing

up blood and became so short of breath she likened herself to having the

body of an 80-year-old. Doctors recommended a new treatment which involved a

tube being placed in her stomach to pump drugs in. Within months Victoria

was back out clubbing with her friends and looking forward to a degree at

Leeds metropolitan university.

Her mother, Susan, 56, said: "She was so brave. She never wanted sympathy

she just wanted to live a normal life.

"She was always dancing, singing and laughing. She was so noisy - fun and

full of life. Everyone loved her.

"She chose health studies because she wanted to help other people. I think

hospitals felt a bit like home and she wanted to repay all that had been

done for her.

"Victoria had big plans. She had thought about her wedding and working as a

nurse - she never thought that she would die now."

Birthday

Her father Bryan said Victoria led a double life - partying and enjoying

student life on the one hand, while few knew of the hidden tubes attached to

her stomach and her grief when she was told at the age of 18 that she could

never have children.

A year later Victoria started her autobiography and as she got closer to

completion her parents planned to present her with a printed copy and a

"This is Your Life" book for her 21st birthday this month.

They sent out invitations to friends and family and bought her a car and a

personalised number plate in secret. But Victoria was rushed to hospital

with stomach problems and she died suddenly a few days later.

Bryan, 49, said: "She only every thought of other people. She had literally

hundreds of friends and they have told us that she inspired them."

To find out more about the autobiography contact www.pha-uk.com

Book details memory of brave Victoria

PRESTWICH ADVERTISER - 8th January 2004

THE family of a Prestwich student who died from a rare heart condition in November are to publish her own inspirational account of her brave fight against illness.

Victoria Lynn, a former King David High School pupil, died in November aged just 20 after a courageous battle with the rare heart and lung disorder, primary pulmonary hypertension.

Victoria was just 14 when doctors discovered her condition, for which the average life expectancy is three years. Against all the odds, she fought to defy that statistic, and was busy writing an autobiography about her struggle - five years after the diagnosis.

She planned to publish the story on her 21st birthday, but died just two months before that date after doctors discovered a blood clot in her stomach. Now her family have decided to publish her moving account to fulfil Victoria’s wishes and raise money for the Pulmonary Hypertension Association, which helped her through her illness.

Proud father Bryan, aged 49, told of how he and his wife Susan, aged 56, had discovered in the wake of their daughter's death just how keenly she looked out for her friends.

He said: “Unbeknown to us, she was helping so many other people, and had this secret life that we've only discovered by people writing to us or visiting. It's been very comforting, we're very proud of her.

“There was one time, for example, when she happened to see a person she knew coming out of a medical centre, and phoned him to ask if everything was okay. All he had was a sprained ankle, and yet only her closest friends and family knew she herself was suffering so badly. She shunned any kind of sympathy, all she wanted was to be normal.”

Sue Taylor, of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association, told us: “She was full of life, very bubbly, and she never allowed it to get her down. She helped and talked to other people about the illness, and helped a lot of people come to terms with it. She was a very brave, caring person.”

The final version of Victoria's autobiography will include her own account of her life up to her 20th birthday, with notes and annotations from her parents. They hope to realise her dream of publishing it within the next few months.

SHE WAS SO BRAVE by Paul Jeeves.

YORKSHIRE EVENING POST - Friday 9th January 2004

A YOUNG student who died from a heart and lung condition has left a moving account of her courageous battle against illness. Victoria Lynn, who was studying at Leeds Metropolitan University, died of primary pulmonary hypertension last year aged just 20. She was diagnosed with the disorder at

14 and told her life expectancy was three years. But Victoria refused to bow to her illness and five years on started writing an autobiography.

Victoria's health started to improve with a new treatment and she planned to publish her story on her 21st birthday - later this month - to raise money for charity. But she died in November after doctors suddenly discovered a blood clot the size of an orange in her stomach. Now her family, who live in Manchester, plan to publish her autobiography to raise money for the Pulmonary Hypertension Association.

Victoria had been dogged by health problems from an early age after being born with a heart murmur, her spleen was missing and she had gut and liver problems so serious that a simple cold would have put her life in danger.

Devastated

When she was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension her parents were devastated. But she defied doctors' predictions and was able to lead a normal life partying with her friends, many of whom didn't even know of her illness. Then at the age of 17, her health plummeted. She started coughing up blood and became extremely short of breath. Doctors inserted a stomach tube to pump drugs in and within months Victoria was back out clubbing

Mum Susan, 56, said: "She was so brave. She never wanted sympathy she just wanted to live a normal life. "She was always dancing, singing and laughing.

She was so noisy - fun and full of life. "She chose health studies because she wanted to help other people. I think hospitals felt a bit like home and she wanted to repay all that had been done for her. Victoria had big plans.

She had thought about her wedding and working as a nurse - she never thought that she would die now."

After moving to Leeds Victoria started her autobiography and as she got closer to completion her parents planned to present her with a printed copy and a "This is Your Life" book for her 21st birthday. They sent out invitations to friends and family and bought her a car and a personalised number plate in secret. But Victoria was rushed to hospital with stomach problems and died a few days later. paul.jeeves@ypn.co.uk

PRESTWICH AND WHITEFIELD GUIDE - JANUARY 16 2004

By Karen Spibey

The memory of an inspirational young woman who fought against health problems from birth is to live on in her autobiography.

Student Victoria Lynn passed away in November ­ just two months short of

her 21st birthday ­ and it was her wish to have her story published to raise money for charity.

Her proud parents, Bryan and Susan, have vowed to fulfil her wish and

proceeds from the sale of Victoria's book will go to the Pulmonary

Hypertension Association, a charity set up to support sufferers of the

condition Victoria had.

Victoria ­ known as Torti to her family and friends ­ was diagnosed with

pulmonary hypertension at the age of 14 and the ultimate treatment for her

condition was a heart, lung and liver transplant.

The news was a blow to her family but Victoria had been plagued with health

problems from a very early age.

She was born without a spleen and all her major organs, except her heart,

were on the wrong side of her body. She had her first operation at just 12

days old to correct a floating bowel and before she was eight weeks old,

Victoria underwent a rare operation to build a bile duct between her liver

and bowel.

Victoria was only the 10th youngster in the world with a mal-rotated gut to

have the Kasai operation and only three children before her had survived the

procedure.

After that, the brave youngster had to attend hospital at least once a year

for a scan as she had a heart murmur, as well as other regular check-ups for her liver surgery.

When she was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension in 1997, the Lynn

family, who live in Prestwich, was told the stark truth that if Victoria did

anything strenuous it could prove fatal at any time.

Life carried on for the King David High School student until her condition

meant she had to be fitted with a device that pumped drugs into her body

through a miniature syringe.

Even when Victoria left home to start a health studies degree course in

Leeds, not many of her friends knew of her illness.

She was the life and soul of the party, had hundreds of friends and was

always out clubbing until the early hours.

Amid her hectic social life, the young woman managed to fit in volunteer

work at Heathlands Village, in Prestwich, and was an avid member of the

Jewish Theatre Group with her two older sisters, Abbie and Kerry.

She also compiled her autobiography which she thought may help other people

in the same situation and her parents had planned to have it published in

time for her 21st birthday.

It came as a complete shock to the people who loved her when she suddenly

fell ill and died.

Doctors discovered a haematoma ­ which is a collection of blood ­ the size

of an orange in her stomach and Victoria did not survive the treatment.

Dad Bryan (49) said: "It was a bolt out of the blue. We are so proud of her

accomplishments, of her attitude to life and more importantly, how she

helped others."

"We were told that around 500 people attended her funeral," added Bryan, "and we have learned

that Victoria helped so many people, often without them knowing the problems

she suffered. She kept in touch with everyone she met and her mobile phone

bills were astronomical!"

Her mum, Susan (56) added: "Victoria couldn't tolerate sympathy, she just

wanted to be normal. She was brave and bubbly and lit up a room when she

entered it. She was like a whirlwind, always on the go. We didn't treat her

like an invalid and she didn't act like one. It was said at her funeral that she achieved more in her 20 years than most people do in a lifetime."

Victoria's life story, which Susan has put the finishing touches to and

hopes will be called "A Breath of Fresh Air" should be available to purchase

in a few months time.

A website has already been set up in her memory at www.victorialynn.co.uk

CELEBRATING GIRL WHO AIDED OTHERS.

JEWISH CHRONICLE (Leeds Community) January 16 2004 by Ivan Green

The parents of a 21-year-old Leeds Metropolitan University student who died suddenly in December held a commemorative birthday celebration for her on Wednesday.

Susan and Brian Lynn, of Manchester, had intended to hand out the cancelled invitations as souvenirs at the shivah for Victoria. But when they saw the large number of her university friends, they decided to hold a commemoration

- on her Hebrew birth date - in Leeds Hillel House.

The couple had planned to surprise their daughter with a printed edition of an autobiography which she had written - in the style of "This is your

life." But celebratory plans turned to tragedy when Victoria finally

succumbed to the severe medical conditons she had chosen to ignore during a busy and active life.

Chief Rabbi Dr Jonathan Sacks included quotes from her autobiography in an address to 100 students at an event in her memory at the Union of Jewish Students conference in Derbyshire last month. Her sister, Abbie, and friends read out poems and shared memories of her.

Her friends have also launched a web page, at www.victorialynn.co.uk, where anyone who knew her can add reminiscences.

Victoria wrote her autobiography with a view to helping fellow sufferers of primary pulmonary hypertension, and described how she intended to make a career of helping others.

My Lynn said "Victoria never thought of dying, but looked forward to getting married and using her degree in health care."

He said he hoped her autobiography could now be published.

Her Leeds housemates, Nicola Graham of Prestwich and Rebecca Farshi of Cheadle, with whom she had also gone to King David School said 100 students would attend the commemoration even though they are in the middle of exams.

Student chaplain Rabbi Hodges said it would provide "an opportunity to remember her in a celebration of life and the preciousness of it."

Friends raise funds in Victoria's memory

FRIENDS of Leeds student Victoria Lynn who died tragically of the heart and lung condition pulmonary hypertension last November are to raise funds in her memory.

Nicola Graham and Rebecca Farshi, both aged 20, are organising an evening at Oslo in Leeds on May 4 from 9.30pm.

Nicola says: "The evening is to be on a "sweet like chocolate theme'' because Victoria loved chocolate.''

All money raised will benefit the Victoria Lynn Charitable Trust. The proceeds will go towards the Pulmonary Hypertension Association (HPA), Heathlands and Jewish students in Leeds.

Victoria was a regular visitor at Heathlands, the Manchester Jewish home for the aged, and her visits brightened the day of many a resident.

Victoria, who was born in January 1983, was the daughter of Susan and Brian Lynn of Prestwich.

Although she was born with a series of serious medical conditions she was not diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension until she was 14.

She began to suffer serious symptoms at 17. Nevertheless she persevered and after leaving King David High School embarked on a Health Studies degree course at Leeds Metropolitan University.

During her time at university Victoria decided to write her autobiography to raise awareness and funds for PHA.

This autobiography is soon to be published by the PHA. Her mother Susan says: "It is an honest portrayal of her life and how she coped with her various conditions.''

The last paragraph of her autobiography was read aloud to the hundreds of mourners, many of whom were students, at her funeral.

Victoria's friends and family have set up a website in her memory www.victorialynn.co.uk

The website gives people an opportunity to fulfil a mitzva in her memory.

It also contains selections of Victoria's poetry, which pay testimony to her fortitude and bubbly personality.

Poignantly, she wrote of her illness: "I suffered as a child. I thought that was enough. Obviously I was wrong. God wanted to test that I was tough.''

Tickets for the fundraising evening in Leeds are £4 in advance or £5 on the door.

Details from Nicola on 07812 018898 or Rebecca on 07813 131359.

Other Articles