THE WIDOW of a popular bus driver who died earlier this month has paid tribute to the “love of her life” and thanked the “overwhelming” support the family has had from well-wishers.

Simon Mildren, from Wantage, died when his car overturned when he was driving home from a dog walk on the Ridgeway on September 2.

Tributes poured in for the 52-year-old, who drove buses on Stagecoach’s Oxford hospital park-and-ride routes and his wife Juanita – a driver for rival firm Oxford Bus Company – thanked everyone for their support.

She said: “I would like to recognise the help and support we have received from so many people.

“I cannot possibly name you all, but amongst you there are family and friends who have been such a huge part of mine and Simon’s lives.

“We have received so many cards, messages and flowers that we have been completely overwhelmed.”

She added: “Simon was the love of my life. He was that very special ‘one in a million’.”

More than 350 people attended his funeral at South Oxfordshire Crematorium last week. Mrs Mildren said she was “astounded” by the turnout.

Cornwall-born Mr Mildren served in the Royal Corps of Transport, mainly in Germany, for 24 years before moving to Grove in 1997.

He rapidly became a popular figure in the town, coaching Grove Rugby Club, and was a regular member at local dance group Jive Temptation.

Prior to becoming a bus driver, he was a chef at The Boar’s Head, which featured in the AA Food Guide within a year of his arrival.

Following his death, his son Tony paid tribute to his “hero” and told the Oxford Mail that the pair shared a touching moment icing his grandson’s cake just hours before he is believed to have had a heart attack behind the wheel.

His dogs remarkably made their way to Wantage Community Hospital after the crash and were later returned home safely.

Juanita thanked family, friends and colleagues for their tributes and messages of support on behalf of the couple’s two children Tony and Stacey and grandchildren Travis John, four, and Kerensa-Lily, two.

Mr Mildren’s passengers – along his route serving the city’s Headington hospitals from Thornhill Park-and-Ride – also paid tribute along with Stagecoach who said their popular driver would be “much missed” by friends and colleagues.

The family said the police had told them it is possible Mr Mildren had a heart attack while driving home, before his car rolled down the hill on to the bank and flipped over.

He was pronounced dead at the roadside.