WHEN Tony Hughes tied the knot with fiancée Anne two years ago there was another woman on his mind.

Twenty years before, Tony, now 40, wasn't expected to live to see 25. That was until a stranger named Karen saved his life.

Now settled in Bournemouth, Tony is trying to track down Swindon woman Karen to thank her for the kindness and compassion that helped him find his feet.

"When I last saw Karen about 15 years ago she was moving to Swindon from Leicester. I am desperate to find her," said Tony.

"I would have loved her to have been at my wedding, because without her I probably wouldn't have found happiness."

Tony - who also lived in Swindon at some point in his 20s - was living on the streets when he met Karen.

He was using what little money he got from begging to fund his cannabis habit.

Tony, who was in his early 20s at the time, was waiting in the Department of Social Security offices in Leicester when he got talking to mum-of-three Karen and her boyfriend Mark.

"My mind is muddled about how old I was then, I have been through a lot," said Tony. "I have problems remembering.

"I told Karen I was living rough and had no family. Before she left the DSS she handed me some money and a scrap of paper with her address on it and told me to go straight there."

Tony stayed with the couple in the New Parks area of Leicester.

In that time Karen and Mark helped him find work and settle into a normal life.

After about two years Karen and Mark began planning their move to Wiltshire and it was Tony's chance to make his own way in the world.

He said: "I went through some hard times and fell back on Karen and Mark again but then we parted ways.

"I know Karen is in Swindon but I don't know whether she and Mark got married or had kids."

In 1997 Tony eventually found himself in Dorset where he got a flat and a job as a healthcare assistant in a nursing home.

It was through work he met future bride Anne Sadler in 2000 and in June 2006 the couple got married.

Anne, 28, said: "I didn't know an awful lot about Tony's situation when we met but over the years he's told me more and more.

"If it wasn't for Karen, we may never have found each other so I think we have a lot to thank her for."

Tony added: "I don't want to intrude on their life - I just want to tell them that I owe them mine."

Are you the couple who helped Tony or do you know Karen and Mark? If so ring the Advertiser newsroom on 01793 501809.