A PENSIONER from Pinehurst was reunited with the good Samaritan who helped her in her time of need when he presented her with a cheque for more than £500 on Thursday.

Geraldine Croucher was hospitalised after a nasty fall in the town centre last month.

She had just collected her pension from the post office and was walking towards the bus station by the Central Library when she suddenly fell to the ground outside the Savoy.

While helpful bystander Ashley Reeves came to her aid and waited with her until the ambulance came, one cold-hearted thief stole Geraldine’s pension money from a bag on her unattended trolley.

The Adver reported on the incident and the story shocked the town.

Donations quickly flooded in to a fundraising page set up by Ashley to replace the 72-year-old’s stolen £159.

The page tripled its target in less than a week.

While Geraldine recovered in hospital, badly bruised along her left side with vision problems due to swelling over her left eye, kind locals raised an impressive £600 via a gofundme page.

After the website took some of the money for various fees, Ashley presented the remaining £538 to Geraldine, who was back in hospital for a hernia operation.

She was overwhelmed when she learned the amount of money that had been raised for her.

Geraldine said: “Really? That much? Oh, that’s so lovely, thank you.

“It shows that there are still lots of kind people in the world and there’s a very good community in Swindon.

“I’m going to buy a new recliner, the one I have now is falling apart a bit.

Ashley said: “She’s a trooper, I’m glad I could help and it was very nice of her to give me a Christmas card.

“It’s great that this story has a happy ending, I hope she has a good Christmas.”

Geraldine’s daughter Lara said: “She loved seeing Ashley again - she said he looked like a mountaineer.

“She never imagined that someone would help to raise that much for her or that so many people would want to donate.

"It reminds you that for every bad person out there, there are 10 good people willing to help.

“Most of it will go towards a new chair for her, she has to sleep upright while she recovers so it’s also like a bed for her.

“It’ll keep her comfortable while she gets better.

“I would like to thank everyone who’s supported her during this time.

“The hospital staff have been marvellous, they say she’s a joy to look after because she’s always in good spirits.

“I received a couple of cheques for Geraldine from kind strangers and one person sent £10 in an envelope, thank you all so much.

“She’ll probably be out of hospital before the new year, the family will visit her on Christmas Day so she doesn’t spend it alone.”

Wiltshire Police investigated the theft of the pension cash but made no arrests after carrying out all their enquiries.