Community champion Bryan Miller, who dedicated his life to uniting and improving a troubled Lincoln estate, died on 4 June, 2008, aged 74.

Volunteer Mr Miller, of Outer Circle Drive on the St Giles estate, died after suffering a heart attack. He had devoted the last 20 years to working in his community, being acknowledged with an MBE in 2004.

Community volunteer Roy Priddey said: "You cannot say enough for a bloke who has got the MBE for doing what he has done.

"He never stopped, he has worked for every charity and group in the estate - nothing was too much for him.

"It is a very sad loss for St Giles. He did an awful lot of work and he is irreplaceable. We all do our bit but he went further."

Mr Miller was a familiar face on the estate because of his work with the St Giles Multi Use Centre, the Community Forum for St Giles and the Tenants' Advisory Panel.

He also helped put together football teams and one of his more recent triumphs was a 'peace garden' on the corner of Swift Gardens and Macaulay Drive.

St Giles neighbourhood manager Noel Tobin said: "Bryan has played a significant part in terms of the St Giles estate.

"He got involved in everything he could to improve the lives of people. With the gardens he wanted somewhere people could truly call a community area."

Despite having a lung and some ribs removed in 2003 following an operation for cancer, Mr Miller continued to strive to improve the estate.

The tenant liaison officer at Lincoln City Council Mark Glasscoe said: "He was already a long standing member of the tenants' advisory panel when I started at the council and he was well respected by officers, tenants and councillors."