Poignant tributes have been paid to a much-loved school janitor who has died at the age of 75.

Frank Milne worked at Johnstone High for decades until he retired in 2008.

He was taken to hospital on Sunday, April 24, after suffering a medical emergency and died later that day.

As news of Frank’s passing spread across social media, people from all walks of life shared fond memories of him.

Close friend Larissa Hale first met Frank as a child, when her family attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Johnstone during the early 1990s.

She told our sister title The Gazette: “He was the most reliable person I’ve ever met and had an amazing sense of humour.

“Frank went to church every Sunday and to every get-together. He was always the first person to open up the building and the last person to lock up.

“I remember that, before I started at Johnstone High, he said ‘Don’t you speak to me at school’ – and then, at school, he would cover his face, pretending he didn’t know me, which he thought was very funny.”

Frank grew up at the children’s home in Quarriers Village, Bridge of Weir, and later lived in Linwood and then Paisley.

A keen cyclist, he enjoyed riding around Renfrewshire.

His bike was once stolen, which led to Johnstone High staff and pupils organising a fundraiser to buy him a new one.

Larissa said: “Frank had some health issues, including physical and learning difficulties, so some students would make fun of him. However, I think that, as they grew older and got to know him better, many came to realise what a reliable and nice person he was.

“He was an usher at my wedding, came to our house at Christmas and all my children got to know him really well.”

Frank was such a valued member of the community that many people would bring him dinners and keep him company at his home, where he lived by himself.

Larissa added: “He didn’t have any family that anyone knew of and was quite private about his past but was always very sociable and involved in many different community groups.

“Frank will be greatly missed and truly was a brother to us all.”

Details of Frank’s funeral have yet to be announced.