All Hail
You might have heard of one man who decided that, in the face of the Corona virus pandemic, he was going to raise a bit of money for the NHS*.
As he had a Significant Birthday coming up at the end of the month, he decided he was going to walk that number of times around his home. Someone put him online with a JustGiving funding page**. The original aim was to raise £1,000, which he thought was a lot.
Just in case you haven't heard, the gentleman in question is Captain Tom Moore. His Significant Birthday was his 100th. At 99 he walks with a walking frame - one of those push-along-on-wheels jobbies. (My Mum has one.)
He did it. Yesterday afternoon. The current total (as of Friday afternoon) is in excess of £18,000,000.
And the 'Captain' bit? He fought in WWII, in India and Burma (that was particularly nasty.) In one way, he'd already 'done his bit' for the country. But, at 99, he wanted to do more. So he did.
They breed 'em tough in Yorkshire, he's from Keighley. For that matter, those of the WWII generation who've survived this long are tough anyway. Resilient.
There's a lady in Sutherland, Scotland, who, inspired by Captain Tom, is 'climbing' Mount Sulliven. All 731m/ 2,398ft of it.
Margaret Payne is 90. She is climbing the equivalent of that height on the stairs at her home. She walks with a stick. Apparently she's had knee problems since she was 12. (She has my empathy!) She started on Sunday.
Her target was £10,000 for the NHS and a local hospice. She reached that yesterday. She'll take a bit longer to summit.
They breed 'em tough in Scotland too.
Y'know, sometimes I'm proud to be British!
There are too many people*** ready to write off anyone over the age of . . . 60? 70? 80? Maybe even some thinking along the lines of,
"Why bother trying to save their lives? Why bother looking after them? Keeping them is expensive. Even when they aren't ill, it's expensive. They're a real drain on National finances."
You know, the kind of thinking Captain Tom and his cohorts joined up to fight against in WWII.
All of which goes to show, inspire people, show them a way in which even 'little old them' can make a Real Difference, and so much can be done.
We were out clapping Key Workers again last night. Here's praying we remember their contributions when this is 'over', particularly that Those In Charge do so too. Many Key Workers are routinely grossly undervalued and underpaid.
All of which is amazing, and very commendable. Now let's see Rishi Sunak (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) match fund them!
Y'all stay safe, stay Socially Distanced****, and Walk On!
Y'all have a good day now!
* After all, the NHS Really Needs the money. It's not just the Present Situation. Governments have been cutting funding year on year for the past decade - like socialised medicine was going out of fashion. It might have been in certain circles (mainly those who have A Lot Of Money) but most of us in the UK need it. Then the PM caught Covid-19, had to be whisked into the nearest NHS hospital and stay there for several days. Let's hope he's learned from that, and does more than just talk about how wonderful the NHS is and how thankful he is.
** Which promptly crashed this morning as people, having heard about his feat on the News, signed up to add to the amazing total, then running at £17,000,000. And rising.
*** Particularly, apparently, Those In Charge in Government.
**** The Covidiocy continues.
As he had a Significant Birthday coming up at the end of the month, he decided he was going to walk that number of times around his home. Someone put him online with a JustGiving funding page**. The original aim was to raise £1,000, which he thought was a lot.
Just in case you haven't heard, the gentleman in question is Captain Tom Moore. His Significant Birthday was his 100th. At 99 he walks with a walking frame - one of those push-along-on-wheels jobbies. (My Mum has one.)
He did it. Yesterday afternoon. The current total (as of Friday afternoon) is in excess of £18,000,000.
And the 'Captain' bit? He fought in WWII, in India and Burma (that was particularly nasty.) In one way, he'd already 'done his bit' for the country. But, at 99, he wanted to do more. So he did.
They breed 'em tough in Yorkshire, he's from Keighley. For that matter, those of the WWII generation who've survived this long are tough anyway. Resilient.
There's a lady in Sutherland, Scotland, who, inspired by Captain Tom, is 'climbing' Mount Sulliven. All 731m/ 2,398ft of it.
Margaret Payne is 90. She is climbing the equivalent of that height on the stairs at her home. She walks with a stick. Apparently she's had knee problems since she was 12. (She has my empathy!) She started on Sunday.
Her target was £10,000 for the NHS and a local hospice. She reached that yesterday. She'll take a bit longer to summit.
They breed 'em tough in Scotland too.
Y'know, sometimes I'm proud to be British!
There are too many people*** ready to write off anyone over the age of . . . 60? 70? 80? Maybe even some thinking along the lines of,
"Why bother trying to save their lives? Why bother looking after them? Keeping them is expensive. Even when they aren't ill, it's expensive. They're a real drain on National finances."
You know, the kind of thinking Captain Tom and his cohorts joined up to fight against in WWII.
All of which goes to show, inspire people, show them a way in which even 'little old them' can make a Real Difference, and so much can be done.
We were out clapping Key Workers again last night. Here's praying we remember their contributions when this is 'over', particularly that Those In Charge do so too. Many Key Workers are routinely grossly undervalued and underpaid.
All of which is amazing, and very commendable. Now let's see Rishi Sunak (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) match fund them!
Y'all stay safe, stay Socially Distanced****, and Walk On!
Y'all have a good day now!
* After all, the NHS Really Needs the money. It's not just the Present Situation. Governments have been cutting funding year on year for the past decade - like socialised medicine was going out of fashion. It might have been in certain circles (mainly those who have A Lot Of Money) but most of us in the UK need it. Then the PM caught Covid-19, had to be whisked into the nearest NHS hospital and stay there for several days. Let's hope he's learned from that, and does more than just talk about how wonderful the NHS is and how thankful he is.
** Which promptly crashed this morning as people, having heard about his feat on the News, signed up to add to the amazing total, then running at £17,000,000. And rising.
*** Particularly, apparently, Those In Charge in Government.
**** The Covidiocy continues.