Captain Tom Moore, a beloved United Kingdom (UK) icon, passed away on February 2, 2021. A British World War II veteran, he was at home in April 2020, when he started a fundraising effort that grew to a worldwide phenomenon. The UK was in the midst of a dark time with a national lockdown of homes and businesses due to the pandemic, and since Captain Tom Moore was grateful for his recent care during hospital stays he wanted to raise money and spirits of the National Health Services (NHS). Captain Tom would begin a 24-day campaign branded “Tom's 100th Birthday Walk for the NHS”. The funds would go to NHS Charities Together which supports the NHS.
“When we started off with this exercise we didn't anticipate we'd get anything near that sort of money. It's really amazing. All of them, from top to bottom, in the National Health Service, they deserve everything that we can possibly put in their place. They're all so brave. Because every morning or every night they're putting themselves into harm's way, and I think you've got to give them full marks for that effort. We're a little bit like having a war at the moment. But the doctors and the nurses, they're all on the front line, and all of us behind, we've got to supply them and keep them going with everything that they need, so that they can do their jobs even better than they're doing now.” – Captain Tom Moore
His goal was to raise 1,000 British pounds by his 100th birthday by walking one hundred 25 metre lengths of his back garden. His story was covered by the media and it lit up the world with his desire to show compassion for others during the dark days of a raging pandemic. His story gave people hope. People around the world began to donate to his cause. By the end of his campaign, there were 1.5M donations made.
Initial goal I,000 BP ($1,364 US rounded up)
Final total 32.79M BP ($45M US rounded up)
Donations were used for items such as the following:
–well-being packs for National Health Service staff
– facilitating rest and recuperation rooms
– devices to enable hospital patients to keep in contact with family members
– community groups who support patients once discharged from hospitals
Source: Wikipedia
His cheerful motto was “Tomorrow will be a good day.” He had an extraordinary last year of his life with an honor military guard present for his final lap, a 100 birthday flyover of his house by the Royal Airforce and Army, media interviews. collaborating on what would become a #1 hit song, and being knighted by
Queen Elizabeth II. Poe in Wonderland wrote about the ceremony on the grounds of Windsor Castle in an earlier post titled, “Captain Moore is Knighted”. Captain Tom even became the oldest British GQ cover model in history.
The flags at number 10 Downing Street in London (residence of the Prime Minister) were at half-mast to commemorate his life. An emotional Boris Johnson released a statement about Captain Tom's contribution to the ongoing pandemic battle. The Prime Minister himself has recovered from the Coronavirus.
“Captain Sir Tom Moore was a hero in the truest sense of the word,” Prime Minister Johnson said in a statement Tuesday. “In the dark days of the Second World War he fought for freedom and in the face of this country's deepest post-war crisis he united us all, he cheered us all up, and he embodied the triumph of the human spirit.”
You might enjoy our post Captain Tom Moore is Knighted.
Lead photo credit: Captain Tom Moore's Twitter page
