TRIBUTES have been paid to a 98-year-old RAF veteran church Elder who was an "absolutely great family man."

Harold Ifor Donnell, has been described as a loving great-great-grandfather until the day he died on July 26 this year at Rhiwlas Nursing Home, Flint.

He dedicated much of his time as president to the Buckley Historical Society, and was a long-standing Elder at St John's United Reformed Church in Buckley.

Mr Donnell was affectionately known as 'Lal' to family and friends but was later to become known as 'Don' by his friends and colleagues.

Born in Caerwys in the summer of 1920, Mr Donnell led an "eventful life", according to his daughter, Patricia Vickers, while he grew up at the family home in Mancot with his parents and three sisters.

During his teens, Mr Donnell was passionate about the Boy Scouts movement which he joined aged 10 and remained a member until his late teens when he had become a leader.

When he left school he worked firstly at Bees Nurseries, Sealand and later worked at Deeside Mill known as Courtauld’s Textile factory in Flint.

Mrs Vickers said: "It was at the outbreak of World War Two that he met Dorothy, my mother, who was to become an evacuee from Liverpool. They had a chance meeting when mum had been visiting family friends in Mancot and due to a road closure following a bombing raid, had stayed with those friends.

"Unknown to each other they had both been invited to a party, probably for their musical skills - Don on the harmonica and mum the piano. That is how they met and the rest is history."

Mr Donnell had an active involvement in World War Two and served in North Africa from 1939 until war ended.

In 2009, the Leader reported on a book launch authored by Mr Donnell, which encapsulated his life, from his early memories in and around Mancot, to his experiences both with the Boy Scouts and in the Western Desert as a Wireless Operator in the RAF.

Mrs Vickers added about the publication, titled 'Just a Tick': "The book is still selling well to this day. It's amazing to think all those years on, people want to read about these things."

Mrs Donnell passed away in 2007, and she and her devoted husband Mr Donnell leave behind a great family legacy which includes two sons, five daughters, sixteen grandchildren, sixteen great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren who are "on their way," Mrs Vickers said.