THOUSANDS of pounds have been raised by people in Dolgellau to remember a “much-loved son of the town” with a memorial stone.

In November 2016, Phillip ‘Fido’ Jones, 69, died from natural causes and local residents grouped together to pay his funeral costs.

His friends, councillors and Dolgellau’s football club were all been quick to pay tribute to the “eccentric” resident.

Dolgellau’s Town Council even held a minute’s silence in Fido’s memory, such was his impact on the town.

Now, a little over a year after his death, more donations have gone towards installing a memorial stone for Fido in Dolgellau Cemetery.

Phil Leeds, assisted by Sarah Richards and Gareth Jones, have raised enough funds for a new hand-carved gravestone.

Phil said: “It really does show the strength of character of Dolgellau that over £3,500 has been raised in memory of Fido, paying for his funeral and now his headstone.

“We didn’t want a shiny stone - that wasn’t him - so we went for a rough, old thing which suits him more we thought.

“Tony Hodgson chose the stone, prepared and hand-carved it all.

“It says a lot about the town, a huge community effort, when they can do that for someone from the town. He was a quirky but well-liked fella, proper character!”

Speaking at the time of his death, then mayor Dyfrig Siencyn said: “The town of Dolgellau was deeply saddened by the loss of one the well-known and much-loved sons of the town.

“Phil was a special character who had his own idiosyncratic eccentricities combined with an innocence that was understood by the people of the town. He was part and parcel of our community, keeping a perceptive and knowledgeable eye on the comings and goings of the area.

“His passing is a loss to us all and he will be fondly remembered. Cwsg yn dawel Phil.”