The grandson of one of the founders of St Wilfrid’s Hospice has been working here as part of his specialist training to become a medical consultant.

Kajtek Skowronski’s grandfather was Dennis Cullen, a well-known local Councillor and Mayor of Eastbourne. A keen supporter of local charities, Dennis was inspired by the start of the hospice movement and joined the steering committee to set up St Wilfrid’s in the 1970s.

Kajtek said: “I was only four when my grandfather died, but I’ve always known about the important part he played in St Wilfrid’s. He was heavily involved in fundraising and getting permissions for the hospice to secure its first property in Mill Gap Road.

“My mum remembers when the hospice opened in 1982 and describes it as revolutionary because sick people could go for a type of care that just hadn’t existed before. She said my grandfather was so proud of his part in St Wilfrid’s and often visited.”

Dennis had left school at 14 and worked his way up from bank clerk to manager of Barclays in Eastbourne. During this time, he was a popular Councillor at Eastbourne Borough Council and was involved in much of what was happening in the local area at the time.

Dennis died in the 1990s but Kajtek still hears stories about him from his family. “He was quite a colourful character who my Nan said would make a speech over the opening of a paper bag! He liked being the centre of attention, and being that kind of character helped to get things done. If you needed someone to raise money, he’d always be able to do that.”

Kajtek, whose father is Polish, grew up in Hastings and is the first doctor in the family. He decided to follow the path into medicine after volunteering at St Michael’s Hospice in Hastings when he was a teenager. “I discovered that I liked looking after patients and hearing their stories,” he said.

After studying at medical school in London, Kajtek returned to Hastings to work as a doctor, and he sometimes had to visit St Wilfrid’s for that role. “I chose to go into geriatric medicine, looking after older people in hospital and the community, and there are a lot of crossovers with palliative care. As part of my specialist training to become a consultant, I have to do placements, so I thought it was a great opportunity to work at St Wilfrid’s properly.

“Being here feels like I’ve helped my family come full circle in a way. It’s quite humbling to think that my grandfather had something to do with the hospice existing. I’m proud on his behalf that it’s flourished and grown into something much bigger and more impressive than its humble beginnings when patients visited once a week for tea.

“And it just shows that if a group of people in their community want to make a difference, then it’s amazing what can be achieved by subsequent generations who then carry that on down the line.”

Pictured: Kajtek holds up a book about the history of St Wilfrid’s that his grandfather features in