Briton Ferry pram parade celebrates 40th anniversary

It has been 40 years since one of Briton Ferry's biggest fundraising events started.

The Ferry Fest Pram Parade was in memory of a popular teenager who died from a rare form of cancer.

David May was 18 when he died in March 1983 from sarcoma, while being treated at Singleton Hospital in Swansea.

His mother Susan May, now 80, said the event pulled the community together "after a tragic death".

"We'd lost David and the local vicar, John Butler called to the house. I said to him 'I really want to do something for the hospital where David was being treated'," she said.

"I thought I'd buy a plant pot. But John said 'we can do something better than that, let's have a pram race'."

More than 300 people participated in the first one as a part of 103 teams, with a further 1,000 people showing up to support it.

David's mother said he was still going out with friends, driving everywhere and doing his paper round until just months before he died.

"We took him into the hospital in the February of '83 and he died a month later."

Sarcoma mainly affects young people and symptoms include painful bones or swollen joints, which can be misdiagnosed as sporting injuries or growing pains. It is rare and aggressive.

Susan felt it was important to mark the 40th anniversary of David's death: "This has brought David back. Even if it's just for a little while."

The former vicar of St Clement's Church, John Butler, was one of the pram race organisers.

"At David's funeral I thought 'we can't let it finish like this', so I thought we can have an event to honour David," he said.

John set up the pram race with Susan's approval. He said the healing it brought her gave him the most satisfaction, adding that it was "an astonishing community event".

Hugh James, a former councillor for the area, who also helped to organise it, said: "It's a wonderful legacy for David. The May family are so well known here.

"While Briton Ferry has never had a lot of money, when it comes to something like this, everyone responded."

The pram race continued until 1995, and it was brought back to the town to commemorate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee last year, ahead of the 40th anniversary event held on Sunday.