A MUCH-loved fund-raiser for a Worcester-based bereavement charity has stepped down from a post she has held for the last five years.

Mary Irish, who is known by many people throughout the county for her fund-raising and bubbly personality, had her last day with the charity at the end of last month.

Mrs Irish has helped raise thousands of pounds for the charity, which is running a £1 million appeal with the Worcester News, and said she will miss the job greatly.

"Worcester has been marvellous. There has been so much wonderful support and I will miss you all very much. Thank you for your support and keep up the good work with helping Noah's Ark. It has grown hugely over the years I have been here and can't wait to see how much more it grows," she said. She has had to return to Ireland for personal reasons but is keen that people still support the charity which is still very much close to her heart - and has urged supporters of the charity to keep up the good work.

"I just want to say thank you to everyone who supports us in any way. This year has been an exciting time of growth for Noah's Ark Trust.

We have had wonderful support to meet this growth and as a result our service now reaches every corner of the two counties," she added.

Gabby Beddows, head of operations at the trust, said: "We are all really sad to see Mary leave the Noah's Ark Trust Fundraising team. She has been such a larger- than-life character and has worked very hard to raise the profile of the charity in Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Mary will be missed greatly, but I know she will be supporting us from Ireland and wishing us the luck of the Irish in appointing her replacement."

She added she hoped to appoint another experienced fundraiser in March.