100 year old Honorary Coronel Sir Thomas Moore (“Captain Tom”) and 5 year old Tony Hudgell have two things in common. Both are walking because of the UK’s National Health Service. Both set out to raise small amounts of money to thank the staff for their work and far exceeded their initial target.
As a newborn Tony was terribly abused with life threatening and changing injuries.
Tony at 41 days old suffered horrific abuse at the hands of his biological parents. He suffered multiple fractures, discolations, blunt trauma to face leading to multi organ failure, toxic shock and sepsis. He ended up on life support and seconds from death.
Sadly in 2017 he had both his legs amputated due to the extreme injuries. His left hip is discolated and missing the ball joint due infection, he has hand issues and deaf in his right ear.
Tony survived thanks to the Evelina London Children’s Hospital. Last year he was fitted with artificial legs and started to learn to walk with a new set in May. When he saw Captain Tom’s fund raising walk and told his adoptive parents “I can do that”. Wanting to raise “a few pennies” for the Evelina he was set the target of walking every day in June to reach 10Km and raise £500. At the time of writing, the total on his Justgiving page is approaching £300,000.
One of the honours Captain Tom has been given is the Freedom of the City of London. That gives him the right to drive a herd of sheep across London Bridge, perhaps he could take a little assistant shepherd with him.
Traditionally Freemen had other rights which I don’t think Tom or Tony will be exercising:
They could carry a sword in public, and if they were to be hung for a crime, they would be allowed to hang with a silken rope. Perhaps best of all, if found helplessly drunk on the streets by the authorities, they would be bundled into a taxi and sent home rather than thrown into a cell for the night.