WHEN Gary Price was born, his family did not think he would live to enjoy his teenage years.

But Gary overcame the odds, celebrating his 18th birthday last Friday and becoming an accomplished musician, horse-rider, DJ and computer whizz-kid along the way.

And this week his family paid tribute to the people of Radcliffe and Bury who helped so much in Gary's early years.

Born 15 weeks premature, Gary weighed just 1lb 9oz and spent the first six months of his life in hospital.

As a baby, he could only be fed on one millilitre of milk at a time, and was so small that the family had to dress him in dolls' clothes. His parents were told that he would be blind, deaf and most probably brain damaged.

He was left blind due to the massive amounts of oxygen he needed to survive. Doctors in this country could do nothing to improve his vision, so his family started an appeal to send him for treatment in Detroit, U.S.A.

Remembering the support from the public, Gary's grandmother, Elsie Corner, of Harper Fold Road, Radcliffe, said: "It was tremendous. We got a lot of help from the Radcliffe Times and the Bury Times.

"The schools in Radcliffe also helped a lot. We'd get children knocking on the door with money they'd collected for Gary from things like sponsored silences."

The £25,000 raised enabled Gary to receive treatment twice in Detroit and although his eyesight could not be fully restored, the surgery meant he could distinguish light and colour.

Since childhood, Gary (who now lives in Daubhill, Bolton) has gone from strength to strength and now enjoys a range of hobbies. His pastimes include badminton, swimming (with two distance awards to his name) and playing various instruments in bands at his college, Henshaws, in Harrogate, where he has just completed his first year.

Mrs Corner says he is "the family's pride and joy". She added: "We never thought he would be here at 18. When he was born, it was such a stressful time for his parents.

"The whole family are so proud of him now. He's grown into an extremely intelligent and talented young man. He can do more than most people on a computer and can play any song he hears on the radio on his keyboard."

Mrs Corner said Gary's condition had spurred him on to be successful.

She said: "He is an extremely positive person and never lets anything get him down. He will try anything.

"He's marvellous, and is such a bonny lad now. To look at him, you would never think that we had to dress him in doll's clothes when he was born.

"He has achieved so much. Reaching 18 is a miracle for someone who went through what he did."