Victor Gardiner - TLM Hero

Victor Gardiner grew up in Belfast and studied Medicine at Queen’s University. Following his graduation, he set sail for India, after hearing of an urgent need for a doctor in a 110-bed village hospital in Katchwa.

While he was still in Belfast, Victor had started writing to Charlotte, a doctor who specialised in anaesthetics who was by then based at the Christian Medical College Hospital in Ludhiana, India. This friendship by letters continued until they finally met face-to-face and became engaged. They married in 1959, worked together at hospitals in Kachwa and Robertsganj, and had three children together.

Eventually, the family returned to live and work in Northern Ireland, remaining deeply committed to The Leprosy Mission’s work. Victor gave more than 20 years to The Leprosy Mission Northern Ireland Council as a trustee, and when he died in 2019, he honoured his life’s work with a significant gift in his will to The Mission. This funded a three year project in southern Nepal to support more than 1000 people affected by leprosy or disability, cementing an extraordinary legacy.