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A much-loved theatre nurse with a "heart of gold" has died after contracting Covid-19.
Terry Boston-Marsh - who worked at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital for 25 years - lost his battle with the virus on Friday. He was 54.
His family, friends and colleagues have been left devastated by his death.
Mum Marlene Tupp said: “Terry was the sort of son everyone would have wanted.
“He was so kind and thoughtful. I only had to mention something I was interested in and Terry would buy it for me.
“He loved working at the hospital; it really was his calling.
"He had recently received his certificate to mark 25 years there and he went out and bought a Westminster chiming clock to mark the occasion.
“Whenever he called I would hear it chiming in the background. Now I will never hear it again.
“I never expected he would go before me, but with this virus anything goes. No one knows how or where he got it, and to begin with it was just the loss of taste and smell but he just got worse and no one could save him.”
Terry was a senior theatre practitioner at the K&C and had recently been redeployed to the hospital's intensive care unit to help in the fight against coronavirus.
“Terry was, quite simply, one of the best," said East Kent Hospitals chief executive Susan Acott.
"He was a hugely skilled member of the team who was highly respected by everyone he worked with.
“He had been redeployed to the intensive care unit during the pandemic and quickly made his mark there thanks to his calm, kind nature and his support of staff, patients and their families.
“Our heartfelt condolences go to his family and friends, particularly his team at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital, who are devastated at the loss of one of our own.”
“We are a family here and we are totally devastated to have lost one of our own..." - colleague Karen Amber
Terry worked in day surgery and the main operating theatres, before moving to the ophthalmic theatre department, where he worked for many years.
Karen Amber, principal operating department practitioner, said: “Terry was a much-loved member of the team and we are shocked and heartbroken at his loss.
“We are a family here and we are totally devastated to have lost one of our own.
“Terry would do anything for anyone and never asked for anything in return.
“He had a wicked sense of humour, but never at anyone else’s expense, and he helped to keep spirits up even in the most stressful of situations.
“We will remember him as a truly kind, funny man with a heart of gold.”
Dr Rosina Zakri, speciality doctor in ophthalmology, gave a tribute on behalf of the hospital’s ophthalmic surgeons.
“Terry was quiet but extremely skilled and this did not go unnoticed by all the surgeons who worked with him," she said.
“He never raised his voice and had a real sense of humour. Terry knew everything; his calm aura filled everyone with confidence and we respected his opinion enormously.
“His loss leaves a hole that is impossible to fill.”
Terry, who lived in Canterbury, died at the QEQM Hospital in Margate. His funeral is yet to be arranged.
He leaves his mum, and a sister who lives in America.
Colleagues are considering a permanent memorial to him on the hospital site.
He is the fifth employee of the hospitals trust confirmed to have died with Covid.
Mum-of-three Aimee O’Rourke, a nurse at the QEQM Hospital in Margate, died aged 39 on April 2.
Intensive care nurse Adekunle Enitan, 55, died at Ashford’s William Harvey on April 24 after being cared for by the team he had worked with for five years.
William Harvey healthcare assistant Rachel Trott died on New Year’s Eve, aged 36.
K&C receptionist Val Stimson, 62, died on January 12.
