Wendy Woods

Wendy Heather Woods (née Bruce; 5 February 1941 – 19 May 2013) was a South African educator and anti-apartheid activist. Woods worked with her husband, journalist Donald Woods, on anti-apartheid activities and both fled into exile to the United Kingdom in 1977. Woods herself was an active member of the Black Sash. In exile, Woods worked with various charities and after her husband's death, set up the Donald Woods Foundation. She and her family are featured in the 1987 movie Cry Freedom.

Biography Woods was born in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa, on 5 February 1941. She did well in school, skipping a year ahead and eventually leaving home at the age of 16 in 1958 to work in Pietermaritzburg as a librarian. Woods joined the anti-apartheid women's group, the Black Sash. She also helped hide those hiding from the police. She visited activist Steve Biko in prison. Eventually, her husband was banned by the South African government, so Woods would have to talk to people, including the media, in his stead. She also went to the inquest into the death of Biko, which took place in Pretoria. During the 13-day inquest, her six-year-old daughter was sent a shirt that was laced with acid by the security police, burning her and spurring the family to choose exile. Woods left the next day with her children and was able to make it past the border by distracting the border official.

In exile, Woods also worked for various charities, including the Canon Collins educational trust and Amnesty International. She established a foundation in her husband's name, the Donald Woods Foundation, in 2003. She worked as the foundation's chair for ten years, helping to build health clinics, educational workshops and other programs for vulnerable people and children in the Eastern Cape.

Woods died from melanoma in Surrey, England, on 19 May 2013.