Tributes have been paid to an Accrington Royal British Legion stalwart and bugle player who passed away aged 67.

Tommy Fox, from Church, served as youth coordinator, bugle player, committee member and Poppy Appeal volunteer at the branch for many years.

The former RAF veteran was diagnosed with lung cancer in April last year.

He passed away on Monday, April 9 - three days after arriving at Hope House care home in Clayton-le-Moors.

His son Richard Fox said: “It’s a shame it all came about so quickly for him and at such a young age.

“He was diagnosed with lung cancer back in April last year. He slowly deteriorated and it speeded up after Christmas.

“He was very active with the Accrington Royal British Legion and it became a big part of his life after he retired.

“He would go all around the area and take part in parades and poppy appeals.”

Grandfather-of-six Tommy served in the RAF in Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s before spending time in Dublin and Inverness.

He moved to Accrington in 1982 and worked as a part-time electrician and later in the warehouse at Argos on Blackburn Road.

Richard, 30, from Clayton-le-Moors, said: “He was an honest person and always made sure I did the right thing. He always showed me love and attention.

“A lot of people have good memories with him.”

Catherine Hughes, vice chair of Accrington Royal British Legion, said Tommy was a ‘great attribute’ and they are all ‘very saddened by his death.

She said: “He planted poppy seeds with our mascot to mark the beginning of the centenary for WW1 and created The Cadets pool tournament.

“He understood that youth needed to be brought into the Royal British Legion and certainly worked tirelessly to enable this to happen.

“Our branch recently renamed the cadet trophy the ‘Tommy Fox Cadet Trophy’ in his honour. Nothing was too much trouble for him.

“He was a very caring, determined and compassionate person. He will be sadly missed and I personally will have very fond memories off him.”

Tommy leaves children Robert, Darren, Steven, Gabriella and Richard.

A funeral service will be held at Accrington Crematorium on Wednesday, April 18, at 2.20pm followed by a wake at Platts Social Club in Accrington.