CYRIL Tomline, who has died aged 86, was president of Oxford and District Chamber of Commerce, a leading member of Oxford Sea Scouts and editor of the Pressed Steel in-house magazine.

Mr Tomline was also a school governor at the John Fisher Roman Catholic School in Blackbird Leys and president of the Oxfordshire Publicity Club.

Cyril Tomline was born on September 19, 1931, in Reading to parents Ernest, a craftsman at Morris Motors who made the first horse boxes, and Florence Tomline.

He was educated at City of Oxford High School for Boys before doing his National Service at the beginning of the 1950s in Malaya, an experience he rarely spoke about.

On his return he had a brief six-month stint as banker before realising his interest was in advertising and publicity, and took a job at the Pressed Steel factory in Cowley.

In a short space of time he became editor of the factory's in-house magazine, circulated regularly to its thousands of employees.

It was around this time, and through his connection with the Oxford Sea Scouts, that he met his future wife Ann.

He visited her family home in Rose Hill to give her sister her 'Cub mistress warrant' and on first meeting Ann invited her to a party the next day.

At the event at the Harcourt Arms in Nuneham Courtenay he proposed and they were married a year later in 1963.

They moved to Hitchin, Hertfordshire, when Mr Tomline took a job with a factory producing plastic bags and cling film – new inventions at the time.

It was Mr Tomline's job to promote them and Mrs Tomline recalled him returning home with a large number of colourful plastic bags – including one with a large Peacock on – and food wrapped in cling film on a regular basis.

Their first child Emma was born in Hitchin and five years later – after they moved to Garsington – their son Adam followed.

His new advertising job at Angus Fire Armour in Thame was behind the move.

The couple lived in Garsington for 38 years, where Mrs Tomline ran a nursery and served on the parish and district councils, while he edited the Garsington newsletter.

He was made redundant at the age of 50, which his son said hit him hard, but he found comfort in the Catholic Church and became an active member of the Catenians, a group which supports bereaved families.

In 1986 he became president of the Oxford and District Chamber of Commerce – a position he held twice – and also a school governor at John Fisher Roman Catholic Primary School in Blackbird Leys.

He set up the Oxfordshire Publicity Club and, after moving to Long Wittenham in 2003, joined the village's lunch club and good neighbours club.

He died from bronchial pneumonia on October 11.

Mr Tomline is survived by his wife Ann, his son Adam and his daughter Emma Jennings, and five grandchildren.

More than 100 people attended his funeral at St John's Roman Catholic Church in Wallingford before he was buried at St Mary's Church in Long Wittenham last month.