100-year-old veteran who raised millions for UK health workers to be knighted

Queen Elizabeth II will knight a 100-year-old British army veteran who raised millions of British pounds by walking 100 laps around his yard. 

Veteran Tom Moore generated about $40 million in a fundraiser to support Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) and was nominated by Prime Minister Boris Johnson for knighthood. 

He will be honored by the government Wednesday, according to The New York Times.

Moore served as a captain in the World War II Burma campaign.

Johnson thanked Moore for his moving campaign, saying, “Colonel Tom’s fantastic fund-raising broke records, inspired the whole country and provided us all with a beacon of light through the fog of coronavirus,” according to the newspaper. 

Moore told the BBC Wednesday that he was honored by the country’s support of his efforts.

“I certainly feel that I’ve been given a very outstanding honor by the queen and the prime minister,” Moore said. “And I thank them all very much. I am certainly delighted.”

Moore’s fundraiser started just weeks before his 100th birthday and was originally a goal he made to overcome a hip replacement, his daughter said. 

His efforts were widely shared across the United Kingdom during the coronavirus pandemic as a beacon of hope for many. 

In a Twitter post on Wednesday, Moore honored front-line heroes at the NHS “who put their lives at risk every day to keep us safe.”

2/2 This started as something small and I’ve been overwhelmed by the gratitude and love from the British public and beyond.

We must take this opportunity to recognise our frontline heroes of the National Health Service who put their lives at risk every day to keep us safe.’

— Captain Tom Moore (@captaintommoore) May 20, 2020