TRIBUTES have been paid to a beloved Colchester resident who became a local celebrity after her dedication to honouring the city’s past touched the hearts of thousands.
Cynthia Anne Grimwood, born on November 9, 1941, was a beloved resident of Stanway Green Lodge Residential Care Home, in Heath Road, Colchester.
Better known as Cindy, she died on November 11 at the age of 82 following a short illness.
In 2016, after moving into the care home, the silver surfer learnt to use a laptop after receiving advice from her son Vincent Grimwood, and soon set up a Facebook page entitled Old Colchester and District In Pictures.
The page highlights historic photos of the city and the surrounding areas, while reminiscing about days gone by and looking to the future of the city.
Over the years, the page has continued to grow thanks to Cindy’s work and now has more than 35,000 members.
Thanks to her hard work, Cindy previously won the Best Community, Partnership and Collaboration award at the Prosper Awards in December 2019.
Following her death the community has reacted with great sadness with many paying tribute to the fantastic woman she was, including her family.
Speaking on behalf of the family, son Vincent said: "Mum's amazing determination in recent years to overcome her disability and turn her focus and attention to her wonderful Facebook group is beyond admirable.
"She will of course be greatly missed and is huge loss to everyone.
"The family would like to thank everyone for their kind words and support.
"It has been of great comfort to know that so many people appreciated her Facebook group and also how loved she was."
Cindy was known to be a kind and well-liked person and everyone at her care home loved her.
A spokesman for the home added: "Cynthia was an amazing person whose ability for living life to the full was nothing short of inspirational.
"The love, respect and appreciation that everyone felt towards Cynthia via her Facebook page, as well as everyone that she came across at the care home, was clear.
"Her kind and patient nature was always evident as she interacted with our residents, especially those with higher needs who she helped and supported with great empathy.
"We are all so saddened by the sudden loss of Cynthia and everyone is taking time to adjust to her not being with us anymore.
"It has left a big hole in our hearts, however, we also want to celebrate her life and pay tribute to her many achievements.
"Thank you Cynthia for allowing us to share part of your life with us, it’s been an absolute privilege to be part of your journey, you will be greatly missed but never forgotten."
Colchester's mayor, councillor John Jowers, did not know Cindy personally but has been touched by her amazing contribution to the city and offered his condolences.
He said: “I am saddened to hear about the passing of Cindy Grimwood.
"She was a true champion of our city and her work to preserve and promote its history was invaluable.
“Cindy’s Facebook group was a treasure trove of old photos and stories that brought joy to so many people.
"It was a place where people could come together to share their love of the city, both past and present.
“I would like to express my sincere condolences to Cindy's family and friends, she will be remembered as a true champion of Colchester and its community.”
Matt Cornell, a former Colchester resident who now lives in Denmark, is an admin of the widely popular Facebook group.
Describing Cindy as a “driving force”, he said: “I never had the pleasure of meeting Cindy in person but we wrote frequently, and it was obvious she was passionate about the group she had created and the history of Colchester.
“She brought pleasure to many people all over the world. I hope the group continues to grow in honour of her memory.”
Ex-Colchester mayor, councillor Tim Young, of the Greenstead ward met Cindy in September last year at her care home when an event was held to celebrate all of Cindy’s hard work.
“Cindy did a wonderful job in recording old Colchester’s history," he said.
“She was a wonderful woman; it is so sad to hear of her death.
“Colchester owes her a lot. It was a lovely occasion to meet her last year.
“Without her we wouldn’t know about many of these historic photos - she deserves a place in Colchester’s history."
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