THE Adver helped give a pensioner her freedom back when a local business fixed her vandalised scooter for free after reading about it in the paper.

Gillian James from Moredon was distraught when a vandal smashed up hers in January.

The electrics were ripped out, the back seat punctured and she thought it was beyond repair.

The 78-year-old relied on it to get around because of the osteo-arthritis in her legs but couldn’t afford to buy a new one.

But after reading about her plight. The Mobility Store on Cricklade Road repaired all the damage and replaced every broken part.

Store engineer Gary Neal surprised Gillian by returning it to her as good as new without charging her a penny.

Gilly said: “It was magic. I was astonished.

“My family still talk to me about it now. They were so impressed that they did that."

Gillian was very thankful to the Adver and to all who helped her.

She added: “I’m so grateful, the paper brought a lot of attention to what happened to me and so many people offered their support.

“The person I want to praise most of all is you, Daniel, you’re my hero.

“I love newspapers, I’ve always read the local paper wherever I’ve lived and one of the first things I do in the morning is read the Adver.

“Local papers keep you in touch with what’s going on in the community, which is so important, especially for older people like me.

“I couldn’t believe that someone would do something as cruel as vandalising an old woman’s mobility scooter.

“I never want to live through that again, it was really awful.

“But people were so kind and wonderful when they heard about what happened. It proved that good will come out of everything.

“My new scooter is brilliant – it’s like a tank.

“I’ve called her Bertha, just like my old one. I couldn’t get around without her.

“I’ve bought a canopy for it and clamp it to the floor when I’m not using it, so it’s nice and secure now.

“When I first tested it out, I didn’t realise that the new controls were reversed from the ones on my old scooter.

“That took some getting used to and lead to a few close calls!”