A FLOOD of donations from generous Adver readers will ensure that injured pensioner Geraldine Croucher has a merry Christmas this year.

Geraldine had a bad fall in the town centre earlier this month and while some bystanders came to her aid, a callous thief stole £159 of pension money from a bag on her unattended trolley.

Ashley Reeves was the first person to help the 72-year-old after she collapsed near the Savoy while on her way to the bus stop by the Central Library.

He later set up a fundraising page after commenters on our website and facebook page suggested that they would be happy to help give back the money which was stolen from her

A whopping £515 has been raised over the weekend.

Ashley said: “It goes to show that there are still a lot of good people in Swindon.

“I was fuming and horrified when I read what happened to her money and I wanted to make sure she could focus on her recovery and not have to worry about her pension.

“I was shocked when I saw the total, it did restore my faith in humanity a bit.

“Anything extra that was donated will go towards a good Christmas for her to make up for the ordeal she’s been through.”

Geraldine’s daughter Lara Croucher was stunned by the amount raised.

She said: “I’m amazed, it’s lovely to know that people care about her.

“She’s always such a generous and selfless person, it’s nice that someone’s done something so nice for her.

“Someone came into her ward and gave her £10 and she was speechless, so I think she’d be overwhelmed by the amount that’s been raised online.

“The money will be put to good use making sure she’s comfortable and looked after when she comes home.”

Ashley was on a break from his work at the Sky stand in the town centre when he saw Geraldine fall head first on the ground.

The 28-year-old from Oakhurst said: “I could see her walking towards me, then the trolley went and she just fainted, it was a nasty fall.

“A couple were walking past and the bloke helped me get her on to a bench, then a guy passed by and called an ambulance before he handed me his phone.

“I stayed with Geraldine until the ambulance came, we waited around 20 minutes I think, and even then she was laughing and joking, she’s definitely a trooper.

“The guy came back ten minutes later to collect his phone and the last time I saw Geraldine, she was being loaded into an ambulance.”

Ashley has been hailed as a hero after Geraldine’s daughter Lara contacted the Adver wishing to publicly thank him for his selflessness.

The link to the Gofundme page is here

However, Ashley modestly insists that it’s not a big deal.

He said: “I’m very humbled by the kind comments but I’m not looking for credibility or the limelight, I was just helping someone in need.”

Geraldine is still recovering in Great Western Hospital with bruising along her left side and swelling above her left eye.

The theft has been reported to Wiltshire Police.

A police spokesman said: “We are investigating an incident which occurred outside the Savoy in Regent Street, Swindon, in which a woman aged in her 70s had her pension money stolen from her bag.

“We are carrying out inquiries, which include obtaining any available CCTV footage of the area.

“Anyone with information in relation to the incident should call the police on the non-emergency number 101.”