She is hoping to encourage difficult conversations around health in a unique way.
Bettina Wallace hopes the new bench will encourage difficult conversations around heart health(Image: British Heart Foundation)
A Nottingham grandma who collapsed on a train is hoping to encourage difficult conversations around health in a unique way.
A new bench has been unveiled in ‘living tribute’ to 72-year-old Bettina Wallace in the Broad Marsh Green Heart in the city centre.
The grandmother-of-five received the shock diagnosis of high blood pressure after collapsing on a train during her regular commute to work.
Despite multiple family members also having high blood pressure, Ms Wallace had never previously been for a blood pressure check.
In 2024, she underwent heart surgery to repair a leaking mitral valve and has since made a good recovery.
The 72-year-old hopes the new bench will encourage the Black community to talk more openly about heart health.
She said: “I am very keen that people see me as a Black woman who isn’t afraid to talk openly about their health and share their experience.
“My eight-year-old granddaughter Fleur is so excited that Nana is going to have a bench with her name on it! This bench will be here when I’m no longer on earth, it will be my legacy – a talking point in Nottingham for the Black community.
“To me, it’s bigger than getting an MBE or OBE because it’s a bench that everyone can see and ask questions about. We need the Black community to talk about health and I hope this will spark more conversations about cardiovascular health.”
Ms Wallace’s bench has been unveiled at the Green Heart overlooking the Standing In This Place statue, which Bettina played an active role in commissioning.
The statue “Standing in This place” has officially been unveiled. (Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Councillor Neghat Khan, Leader of Nottingham City Council, said: “I’m delighted to see this colourful addition to our wonderful Green Heart and pleased to hear that Bettina is doing so well after heart surgery.
“The siting of her bench is also important because Bettina played a key role in the installation of the nearby Standing In This Place statue, which recognises the contribution of thousands of unnamed women who were the driving force behind the East Midlands cotton industry during Industrialisation.
“I know that the statue and its powerful message mean a great deal to Bettina and others that worked on the project, so we hope that she will be able to enjoy admiring the sculpture from the comfort of this new bench in her honour.”
British Heart Foundation hopes that the red benches will encourage others to open up about their experience of living with cardiovascular disease and help raise awareness across the UK.
Ms Wallace added: ‘There is stigma and judgement attached but the more we get people talking about heart conditions the less stigma there will be.
“Lots of members of the Black community are reluctant to talk about health but we need to get involved in research.
‘I want to challenge the taboo, I want my grandchildren to know I experienced heart conditions and that I wasn’t afraid to speak about them.
“As an individual, I feel I have a duty to speak about my health. Cardiovascular disease doesn’t just affect one demographic or ethnicity – it can affect all of us – but as an African Caribbean I am more prone to cardiovascular disease, so I’m passionate about rising awareness.