It was an ordinary day in extraordinary times when Ian Taylor left his family home, telling wife Maureen he was popping out for a drive to check his car’s oil level.

The popular dad-of-two said he would be gone for just a couple of hours on that Wednesday in June 2020, a time when restrictions from the first national Covid lockdown were slowly being lifted.

But retired train driver Ian never returned. His body was found hours later by police at his favourite family beauty spot, having taken his own life at the age of just 64.

The inexplicable tragedy left his wife and children, Tony and Nicola, beyond devastated and baffled because Ian had never suffered from any depression that they knew of, never hinted at what might be on his mind.

“Dad was happy, outgoing and sociable and with no signs of any mental health issues. He loved life,” said Solihull-based Tony, a process scientist at Severn Trent.

“He was of the generation who just got on with things when times get tough. He didn’t tell anyone how he was feeling and must have suffered in silence.”

Tony bravely spoke out at the start of Mental Health Awareness Week, a week when he and Nicola will be running the equivalent of seven marathons in seven days to fundraise for the MIND charity, in honour of their beloved dad.

“Dad supported many charities himself, so I’m sure he would be proud of us,” said Tony, who works at Severn Trent’s Longbridge Sewage Treatment Works in Warwickshire.  “He was always someone who wanted to help those in need.”

Recalling the events of that awful summer day, he said: “Mum called me when Dad did not return and I drove down to look for him, but could not find him. In the end police said it would be better if we waited at home.

“Hours later they called at the house, sat us down and told us they had found Dad at Box Hill in Surrey. He and mum had both loved the place as kids as you can see right across the county from the top of the hill, we’d been there as a family too. 

“I was in a state of disbelief. I remember hoping the police had got it wrong, that it was someone else in a similar car, not that I wished that on anyone.

“But after it sinks in you feel powerless. Was there something I could have done to help, should I have noticed a change in his behaviour, say ‘Dad, are you ok?’

“But there were no changes in behaviour, no signs. He was even planning a holiday to the Norfolk Broads with mum – you wouldn’t think someone planning that would do this.”

Tony grew up in a loving family home in London, with his dad working as a coach and bus driver before gaining a job as a Tube train driver.

“When I was a boy Dad would sometimes let me go on the day-trips he was taking to the sea-side, I loved that,” recalled Tony, an environmentalist who once spent a year volunteering to help save turtles in Greece.

”We’d spend a lot of time as a family at the beach and have sandcastle building contests, with Dad saying he would buy us an ice cream if they were good enough. He’d often say ‘there’s not enough turrets on that one’ to get us to try harder.”

Clay pigeon shooting enthusiast Ian took early retirement after suffering ill health, with medical problems plaguing him in his later years living in Reigate, Surrey. This is the only factor Tony can point to as a possible reason for what happened.

“We would sometimes go for long walks and dad would get breathless and struggle to talk and would need to stop and have a rest,” he said. “Dad had previously suffered a min-stroke and the doctor did warn him that he might suffer other issue in the future, which did worry him.

“I know many people suffered with mental health in lockdown but I don’t believe that was a factor with dad.

“The last time I saw him was at a lockdown ‘distance picnic’ and he seemed fine. My last conversation was telling him about a forthcoming Space X rocket launch and urging him to watch it on YouTube. But he just rolled his eyes as he had no interest in space like me – it was a bit of a running joke between us.”

Ian died days after that happy family event, leaving behind a heartbroken widow and devoted children who now plan to honour his memory in the most inspiring of ways. Tony and Nicola, 29, plan to run some 299km over seven consecutive days during Mental Awareness Week along the famous Thames Path, which follows the waterway from its source in Kemble, Gloucestershire, to the Thames Barrier in London.

The siblings have both completed previous marathons and have been training up to six nights a week for this gruelling ultra-marathon. They start on Monday and hope to be finished before Sunday.

“I’ve been long distance running for the last six years and it is a great way to help de-stress after a hard day’s work,” said Tony, who works on improving final effluent to protect the health of rivers.

“It’s wonderful doing this with my sister, who took up running later than me – but is better than me now. We are not competitive, we will be supporting each other through this.

“It will be beautiful to run along the length of the Thames Path as I love rivers and work on protecting them as much as we can.”

And much-loved Ian will be with his children during their emotional journey, every step of the way. “I’ll be carrying a photo of Dad with me and wearing a MIND vest,” said Tony.

“So far we have raised more than £2,000 for MIND which is fantastic, particular during the cost of living crisis. I’ve had so many people sponsor me at Severn Trent, everyone’s been wonderful.

“But as important as the fundraising is raising awareness.  We want to let people know there is support available for anyone struggling with their mental health - they just need to talk.”

*If you need to talk to someone about mental health support, call MIND on 0300 123 3393.

**The mental and physical wellbeing of its employees is a top priority for Severn Trent. We provide an Employee Assistance Programme –a free and confidential support service designed to give employees unlimited access to information, advice and emotional support.