WHAT makes a place special?

I have been pondering this question as somebody recently asked me to identify some of the positive features of Basingstoke.

No doubt this person did not mean to be offensive, but he did add that the town seemed to be famous for its roundabouts, and little else.

My reply was that it is the people of Basingstoke that make the town special.

You do not have to look very far each week in The Gazette to find out why.

One example in this week’s edition stands out – the response to a fundraising appeal made by Luke Yates.

As reported, the 28-year-old lost his wife Sam on April 4, 2013, after her battle with cystic fibrosis.

Before her death, Luke had started to make a film about his wife’s wait for a double lung transplant.

Instead of scrapping the project when she died, Luke carried on, eager to raise awareness about organ donation, but he needed cash to finish the documentary to a professional standard.

Amazingly, more than 350 people answered his call, and donated more than £15,000 between them.

As Luke has said, those pledges spiked when his story was published in The Gazette last month.

Thanking those who responded, he added: “We started filming a long time ago and we continued with heavy hearts to do some good amidst the tragedy.”

Perhaps Basingstoke does have a lot of roundabouts.

But what makes the town special are people like Luke, and those who responded to his call.

Chris Gregory