A former regional press journalist who was the first woman to hold a newsdesk role at a South Coast title has died at the age of 58.

Krysia Knight started out in journalism as a reporter at the Oldham Chronicle, where she was asked to change her Polish surname from Nieszczeretna to something more manageable for a byline – choosing Knight after flicking through a phone book.

She joined the Bournemouth Evening Echo in 1977, first covering the Ringwood and Fordingbridge patch, before becoming chief reporter then assistant news editor.

Krysia left the paper in 1991 to move to America and died in Florida in January after being diagnosed with brain cancer last year.

The former journalist married Gerry Goodwin, a tour director with Cosmos, when she moved to the US and she beat off competition from more than 400 applicants to become a concierge at the San Francisco Hilton.

She and her husband later moved to Florida where they ran London Pride – a specialist shop selling UK goods.

Gerry said: “Her illness came totally out of the blue, but as strange as it may sound, she was really happy in the last three months of her life. She made the most of every last second.”

Krysia’s funeral was held in her home near Orlando and she is also survived by her mother who still lives in Bournemouth.