'Ron' soldiered on despite family loss; Military man experienced bitter-sweet life in WWII: MILITARY man Ronald David Smith has died, at the age of 89.

RONALD David Smith, known as Ron, was a man of many skills and talents, who began his military career as a dispatch rider with the Royal Signals during the Second World War.

Raised in Riverside, Cardiff, he suffered tragedy at a very young age when his father died with trench fever when he was only two weeks old. Ron's mother Beatrice was left alone to raise him and his brother Ken.

Times were hard and, in his mid-teens, Ron started work as a telegram delivery boy to help his mother, progressing to deliveries on motorbikes.

This was followed by a career as a dispatch rider with the Royal Signals. He must have shown great skill and ability, as within a short period of time, Ron was assigned to an elite group called the Combined Forces. Although extremely proud to have been associated with this esteemed military unit, Ron never bragged about his success or the vital roles he played during the Second World War.

He was awarded many medals after taking part in five military landings alongside the Cana-dianand Americans and was responsible for setting up all the advanced communication systems.

Only days before his 21st birthday, Ron experienced another terrible tragedy, which he never fully talked about until shortly before his death at the age of 89, following illness.

On January 2, 1941, his mother Beatrice, who lived in De Burgh Street with his 83-year-old grandmother Ruth McKnight, and his two aunties were killed when Cardiff was bombed.

But in the midst of a war, life had to carry on, giving Ron little chance to grieve for the precious family he had lost.

When the war ended, Ron returned to the post office and continued his connection with the army before joining the Territorial Army.

He met his wife Joan through her father, who worked as a postman. Ron and Joan married in 1953 and enjoyed 56 happy years together, very rarely apart.

Always one to enjoy a night out, one of Ron's favourite pastimes was to go dancing with his beloved wife, who was the envy of many other girls. His love of music also meant he was always the life and soul of the party, whether he was playing guitar, the piano or starting a good old sing song.

As well as being a loving husband, Ron was a proud and devoted father, grandfather and great-grandfather. The couple had a son Roy and two daughters, Janet and Cheryl. And they were later blessed with eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

A much loved family man as well as highly respected military man, Ron will be missed by his family and many friends.

His funeral will be held tomorrow with a requiem mass at St John Lloyd RC Church, St Mellons, at 2pm, before cremation at Thornhill Crematorium's Wenallt Chapel, during which The Last Post will be played by a bugler as a solemn recognition of Ron's military career.

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Ronald David Smith