Ivan Howlett, the founding editor of BBC Radio Suffolk has died after a long struggle with cancer.
Mr Howlett founded the station in 1990 and managed it for many years before producing programmes for BBC national radio.
During his programme making days, Ivan won the Spoken Word Gold Award for the Radio 4 Series The Century Speaks, and presented The Shanghai Sailors which was nominated for the Pearl Awards.
Most recently, he co-founded AuViPod, a company offering professionally produced audio and video podcasts.
Nick Pandolfi, an presenter on SGR who worked with Ivan at Radio Suffolk, paid tribute this afternoon. He said: "I know there will be many people who will like me have so many fond memories of a great Suffolk man.
"He is in my and I know in so many others minds a true Suffolk hero. Without Ivan, Suffolk would not have had the BBC for a few years longer, countless journalists would not have had a break in a radio newsroom and without Ivan network radio would have a few holes in its schedule.
"He was the most humane of human beings, never a yes man and always a true friend."
