A VEGETARIAN campaigner from Ryedale who spent her life educating people about healthy eating has lost her battle with breast cancer.

Verity Steele, of Broughton, near Malton, was a keen environmentalist who also worked for a time as a park ranger for the North York Moors National Park.

Verity hit the headlines in 1996 when she announced she had fallen in love with convicted murderer Stuart Brownhill, who is serving a life sentence.

She met Brownhill, whom she has never seen alone, when she became a voluntary visitor at Full Sutton Prison, near York.

When Brownhill, who has served 14 years, was transferred to Whitemoor Prison in Cambridgeshire in 1996, Verity told a BBC documentary team how the strain of maintaining a long-term relationship had almost driven her to suicide.

She had suffered with breast cancer for several years and had a mastectomy soon after being diagnosed.

Paying tribute, a close friend, who asked not to be named, said Verity had led a life full of activity.

"Besides campaigning on a national level she was very much involved with the local community," she said.

"She became a vegetarian about 27 years ago when she decided she could no longer face preparing Christmas turkeys because of the cruelty they had endured."

She moved to North Yorkshire from Cambridgeshire 20 years ago and quickly became involved in local activities.

"She came here with the idea of carrying out tours of the region, but then launched a vegetarian wholesale business supplying hotels and restaurants," her friend said.

"For about four years she was a park ranger with the North York Moors National Park, but gave that up when she developed breast cancer.

"She was very much involved with her local area and has left money to Broughton Parish Council to erect signs on footpaths in the village."

In 1990 Verity set up a food education group in Ryedale, which aimed to encourage food producers in the district to communicate better with each other.

She leaves a son, Duncan, and a daughter, Theresa.

Her funeral was due to take place today at 1pm at St Michael's Church, in Malton.

This was being followed by burial in the cemetery of Coneysthorpe, which is in the grounds of Castle Howard.

Updated: 12:00 Wednesday, February 06, 2002