Captain Sir Tom Moore 1920-2021


We are saddened and shocked to bring you the devastating news that Captain Sir Tom Moore has passed away of COVID-19 today, 2nd February 2021. In this article we will look back over his life, achievements and the legacy he will leave behind.

 

Captain Tom Moore was born Thomas Moore in Keighley, West Riding of Yorkshire on the 30th of April 1920. Once he finished school he gained an apprenticeship as a civil engineer.

In May 1940, he was joined into the army and stationed at 8th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment and 8 months into the war was stationed in Cornwall. In 1941, Tom was moved to India, first Mumbai then Kolkata, where he trained army motorcyclists.

Moore returned to the UK in February 1945 to take a training course on the workings of the Churchill tanks, learning to become an instructor. His plan was to return to India but he never did, staying in England until in early 1946 he was taken out of active service.

Captain Tom then worked in various building trades until his retirement when he focussed on his charity work. He started a JustGiving page titled “Tom's 100th Birthday Walk for the NHS”, which raised over £30 million. Tom aimed to complete 100 laps of his garden to raise money for the NHS and its’ employees. The original target was set at £1000 but this was easily surpassed with over 1.5 million people donating from all across the world. He subsequently started the Captain Tom Foundation, for which all of the money raised goes towards the NHS and its employees.

A petition was then started to secure Tom, “this point of light” (Quote – Boris Johnson), a knighthood. The petition reached over 800,000 signatures and the knighthood was given on 17th of July 2020.

Since that day, he had many new accolades, such as a carriage on a Great Western Railway, a bus in his hometown of Keighley and even a police dog puppy named after him!

Captain Sir Tom Moore sadly passed away with COVID-19 on February 2nd 2021. He has left a legacy of bringing Britain together in a time of trouble and he will be forever in our hearts and prayers.

RIP Captain Sir Tom Moore

1920-2021