A WIDOW whose daughter stole her husband's pension is delighted after being given a £100 holiday voucher by a generous family man.
Patricia Lyon, 63, had no experience of dealing with banks when her husband died suddenly and asked daughter Claire to withdraw spending money on her behalf.
But Claire, 29, used the free access to steal £60,000 of Patricia's money – leaving her with just 89p in the bank.
Michael Robinson read about Patricia's plight in the Mail and was so moved by her story he donated a £100 voucher for a British coach trip.
"I felt for her and I thought it was the right thing to do," he said.
"It's disgusting what her daughter's done and I hope she's ashamed of herself.
"I wish I could do more for her."
The voucher is for coach company National Holidays and would more than cover the cost of a trip to many British cities or the rugged countryside of the Yorkshire Dales.
Patricia picked it up from the Mail offices yesterday.
"I'd like to thank him for his generosity," she said.
"It's cheered me up. It restores your faith in humanity.
"There aren't many people who do things like that nowadays."
Patricia's husband Robert died suddenly at home in September 2009.
He worked for East Riding Council and left his wife a lump sum of £87,000 from pensions and other sources.
Claire was given her mother's bank card and PIN to withdraw money.
But in less than two years it was all gone – with £60,000 stolen by Claire and frittered away on items such as toys for her children.
Claire falsified bank statements to keep her mum in the dark and even called her pretending to be from the Fraud Squad in an attempt to frame Patricia's son Andrew.
The deception only became clear when Patricia called the bank herself to withdraw money for a holiday in Spain – and was told just 89p was left.
Now she has gone through the trauma of seeing Claire sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to theft at Hull Crown Court, Patricia is ready for another break.
She wants to use her voucher for a trip to Blackpool and said she will write a thank-you letter to Michael, who plays in Hessle band the Fixers.
"We might go to Blackpool. I've never been to see the illuminations before," she said.
"It's a really nice thing he did.
"We might even go to one of Michael's gigs."
