TRIBUTES have been paid to well-known Pershore man Ray Johnson who died from heart failure last month.

Mr Johnson, aged 82, who raised thousands of pounds for charity through an annual fund-raising event over six years, died on March 30.

After undergoing a major heart operation in 1999 when he was 70, Ray started the annual golf event at the Vale Golf Course in Evesham.

Ray’s Heart Awareness has helped buy equipment including health monitors for Pershore Health Centre.

Daughter Mandy Hodgekins fondly remembers her father as a man who wanted to give something back after having his heart bypass.

She said: “It really gave him a second wind. He was poorly for a few weeks but after that he was totally rejuvenated. He really did embrace life after that.

“He raised a lot of money for the local health centre for heart monitors.

“He really took the whole thing on – he wanted to give something back.”

Ray enjoyed his time as a volunteer with the Royal Observer Core, in Defford, during the 1980s and was also a member of Skywatch, a charity that aims to search and report incidents from the air.

He had a varied career including working for electrical shop Wireless Supply, then after he retired he did book-keeping and was a mentor at Pershore High School.

Ray is survived by his son Richard, two grandsons, and his partner of 40 years, Joan Sergeant. His funeral service was held on Wednesday at Pershore Abbey.