People

AS MOST people unwrap presents and feast on turkey, one kind-hearted dentist plans to spend Christmas Day transforming the smiles of homeless people in London.

Dr Souraya Kasenally (pictured) is volunteering her services to Crisis, the national charity for single homeless people, by removing decay and repairing broken teeth.

DEVOTED members of a charity which has improved the lives of thousands of hospital patients gathered in Northwood to celebrate 75 years of service.

About 100 volunteers attended a special anniversary party for the Mount Vernon Comfort Fund, which has been raising money to provide extra equipment at the Rickmansworth Road hospital since 1935.

The Comfort Fund has collected about £70,000 every year - adding up to more than £5million in total - to meet the cost of items which cannot be purchased within NHS budgets, such as wheelchairs, electronic beds, emergency resuscitation kits and water fountains for 10 different areas in the hospital.

DOZENS gathered in Croxley Green to witness an English patron saint draw swords with a dragon and a giant, as part of a traditional Christmas custom in the village.

For the 16th year running, the Croxley Green Mummers braved the snow and sub-zero temperatures on Sunday (18) to perform a folk play based on the legend of St George.

A MILITARY band has been given a helping hand after losing valuable musical equipment in a fire.

A drum kit owned by Rickmansworth Air Training Corps (ATC) cadet sergeant, Joshua St Lyon (pictured), 17, was destroyed after his family home in Mill End was subject to a serious fire in July this year.

MILITARY top brass have been hailed as heroes for raising cash to improve the lives of cancer sufferers.

Personnel from Northwood Headquarters raised £1,500 for the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre (LJMC), based at Mount Vernon Hospital - enough to provide complimentary therapy for 15 patients.

Staff at the NATO base, in Sandy Lane, have selected LJMC as one of their chosen charities for several years running. The cash was generated through a series of fundraising events and raffles held throughout the past year.

A NORTHWOOD Hills driver is still waiting for compensation from a cricket club after her dream car was struck by a ball, but insurers 'said it was an act of God'.

Kayleigh Richardson-Flitt only bought her classic Nissan Figaro two days before it was hit by the ball from Eastcote Cricket Club as she drove in Joel Street, causing about £600 damage to the windscreen.

NORTHWOOD became a sea of red and white on Saturday (4) as more than 100 men and women donned Santa Claus costumes for a charity fun run.

Runners of all ages defied the cold weather to take part in the first annual Santa Dash organised by Michael Sobell House hospice (MSH), based at Mount Vernon Hospital.

Teenagers and pensioners stood shoulder to shoulder as they followed a marshalled route from the MSH charity shop, in Green Lane, to the hospice, in Rickmansworth Road, carrying sackfuls of presents for patients.

DEMENTIA sufferers' families have expressed their dismay after a Northwood day centre for the elderly was abruptly closed, amid 'serious health and safety concerns'.

Eastbury Road Day Centre (pictured), in Eastbury Road, was permanently shut on Friday (26), after Hillingdon Council cabinet members decided just one week earlier that the building was 'not fit for purpose, due to unacceptable safety risks in the event of a fire'.

RICKMANSWORTH High Street came alive with Dickensian charm on Friday (26) as the town hosted its popular Victorian Evening.

Hundreds of people braved biting winds and sub-zero temperatures for the annual event, which saw traders and stallholders dress in period costume to serve mulled wine, mince pies and roasted chestnuts.

MEMBERS of Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue were among thousands across the country who did a good deed as part of Mitzvah Day.

The Jewish-led initiative encourages others to get their hands dirty by volunteering their time, instead of cash, for good causes.

Kind-hearted representatives from the synagogue, in Oaklands Gate, Northwood, joined Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner MP, Nick Hurd, to deliver toys and children's books to Jake's Place, a children's ward at Northwick Park hospital.