A FAMILY has paid tribute to a loving and caring husband who became well-known among Royal Mail staff in Swindon .

Trevor Merriott died aged 63 on August 9, with his family by his side in West Swindon, two years after being diagnosed with mesothelioma.

His wife of 37 years, Liz, 59, said: “He was a family man through and through. Family always came first and he doted on his three grandchildren.

“He was very loving, very caring, very supportive and loved his sport.

“Everyone I have heard from has said what an amazing person he was – friendly, supportive, a good sportsman, a true gentleman and worked hard at everything he put his mind to.

“He was respected by everyone he came in to contact with.”

Born and bred in Tipton, West Midlands, Trevor and Liz eventually moved to Swindon in late 1985 when he received a promotion within Royal Mail, for whom he had started as an apprentice.

He worked his way through the ranks at the Swindon depots and ultimately became a project manager at the research centre in Dorcan.

He took redundancy at the age of 51 and put the money into starting up his own photography and electrical businesses.

F22 Photography was a business he and his wife worked on together, mainly going to weddings and providing photos for those celebrating.

H&G Electrics was the name of the company he worked under as an electrician, focusing on providing a good value, fast service, mainly for pensioners around the town.

He also created and built up Nowfoto and RTA Electrician, which were other ventures he worked with using his photographic and electrical engineering skills.

“Since he’s passed away, all the people I have had contact numbers for, they have been sending messages and passing the details on to other people I couldn’t get hold of,” said Liz.

“I even had call from someone who used to play football with him. Someone he hadn’t seen in 45 years, up in the Midlands. He was shocked and passed on his best.”

Aside from his working life, Trevor was a keen sportsman, playing football for Tipton Town in his younger days and then badminton in Swindon.

He was also a huge Aston Villa supporter.

The family have asked anyone attending the funeral, which takes place at 1.30pm on August 26, at Kingsdown Crematorium, to wear a football shirt.

The family, which includes Trevor and Liz’s two sons, David, 31, and Daniel, 29, paid tribute to the care Prospect Hospice provided Trevor in his last few months.