THE family of a man who was well-known in Hurstbourne Tarrant for his daily walks have thanked those who tried to save him before his death.

Ron May, pictured, died on Thursday, May 3, aged 83, after he suffered a heart attack while on his routine stroll around the village.

His son Ian May, 56, and daughter Sue Kneller, 60, have paid tribute.

Sue said: “He had a triple heart by-pass 20 years ago and since then he has gone for a walk everyday and has got to know people in the village on his walks and trips to the Post Office.”

The family said that passers-by helped Ron when they spotted him struggling and jumped out of their car.

Sue added: “He was lucky some strangers went by in their car and came and did CPR on him and there was also a defibrillator on the Post Office wall and they knew how to use it. To all the people that helped, thank you for being there.”

The family has also thanked Ron’s neighbours on the Dean Rise estate who looked out for him since his move 20 years ago.

Before his death, Ron was a driver for Andover Neighbourcare and used to take older people, some even younger than him, to appointments.

“When we got to the hospital they said that his phone hadn’t stopped ringing as he was due to be at work,” Sue added.

“He was very good for those he drove, he used to take them into hospital lift their wheelchair in and out of the car.”

Ron began volunteering with Andover Neighbourcare after his wife Ida died.

From the children of first marriage to Edna, Ron also leaves behind two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.