Ref. 76043-032A PUB fun day in memory of a Swindon man has raised more than £1,000.

"And there's still more coming in," said his step-daughter Liz Reed, yesterday evening at the event at the Village Tavern in Toothill.

Denis Proffitt, suffered from heart disease for almost a third of his life, and now his family is trying to make people more aware of the condition and raise funds to help sufferers.

His widow June, 67, of Upper Stratton looked after her husband for 27 years as he suffered from the effects of chronic heart disease.

He was effectively a prisoner in his own home, and even simple routines such as washing left him out of breath and totally dependant on June.

He died in July 2001, and later a film made by Channel 4 charting a short period of Denis' life was aired on national television to demonstrate the problems of heart disease. Now, Mrs Proffitt and her family are helping raise awareness of the disease and funds for 30 British Heart Foundation nurses.

The nurses, like Macmillan cancer nurses provide care to heart patients after they leave hospital, carrying out regular home visits with the aim of improving sufferers' quality of life.

The heart nurses also help to alleviate pain and explain symptoms and medication to the patients and their families.

June explained: "I needed to do something to help others who might have been in the same boat as I was.

"After the Channel 4 film was made, my husband said he was happy to have filmed it even if it only helped one person in the future."

June's son Neil Wells, 40, said if British Heart Foundation nurses had been around when his stepfather had been suffering, they could have made a huge difference to his life.

He said: "Denis was effectively a prisoner in his own home because of the illness.

If the nurses had been around, it would have been a new face for him to see and they could have been able to advise on medical treatments, it would have taken a lot of strain off my mum."

June said: "I think if a BHF nurse had been there, it would have been a great support.

"We had nobody coming in to help us it would have been a shoulder to lean on, someone there to take over and give me some rest as well, as I was working 24-7 to look after him."

Today June was appearing on GMTV to talk about raising money for the British Heart Foundation nurses.

Anthony Osborne