Top stepdad wins Father's Day contest

ENTRIES flooded in for the Echo's Father's Day competition, but one, David Baker, from Teignmouth, stood out.

His stepson, Joseph Baker, 15, nominated him for the prize of a £200 Debenhams gift card.

His letter said: "My dad deserves to win the Father's Day competition because he's blind and took me and my sister on when he married mum.

"He's always there for me. You can have a great laugh and a joke with him. I've never had a dad as my dad walked out on my mum when I was a few weeks old."

The Year 10 Teignmouth Community College pupil, who has cerebral palsy, only told his mum, Jean, that he was entering the competition when he went out to post his letter.

He said: "I didn't think I had a chance of winning. I was shocked.

"Dad only found out when the Echo phoned up to say he had won."

David, 54, relies on guide dog Inga, a black Labrador retriever cross. He retired from Barclays Bank nine years ago.

He met Jean, 53, through a friend a couple of years ago, when she and her children were living in Milton Keynes.

After keeping in touch by telephone and visiting, Jean and the children moved to Teignmouth to be with David in December last year.

David and Jean married at Newton Abbot register office on Valentine's Day this year. Jean's daughter Angela, 19, was bridesmaid and Joseph helped with the music and photos.

David was pleased that Joseph had entered him into the competition: "I thought it was a wind-up, as he's always winding me up. I didn't know he could keep something like that quiet!"