LONDON (AP) – Church bells rang and a World War II plane flew over the funeral service of Captain Tom Moore on Saturday in honor of the veteran who raised millions of pounds on his own for British health workers by walking laps in his backyard.
Soldiers performed ceremonial duties at the private service for Moore, who died on February 2 at the age of 100 after testing positive for COVID-19. Captain Tom, as he became known, inspired the UK during the first months of the coronavirus pandemic with his modest effort which raised nearly £ 33 million ($ 46 million) for the British National Health Service last year.
The private service was small, by only eight members of the veteran’s immediate family. But soldiers carried his coffin, draped in the Union flag, from the hearse to a crematorium and formed a ceremonial guard. Others greeted a gun before a C-47 military transport plane flew past Dakota.
“Dad, you always told us ‘Best foot forward’ and true to your word, that’s what you did last year,” Moore’s daughter, Lucy Teixeira, said during the service. “I know you’ll watch us laugh and say, ‘Do not be sad, for something must eventually get you. ‘
His other daughter, Hannah Ingram-Moore, said the world was “enchanted” by her father’s “spray of hope, positivity and resilience.”
“They too have seen your belief in kindness and the fundamental goodness of the human spirit,” she said.
The service features music that reflects the man being honored, with the version of ‘You’re Never Walk Alone’ that Moore recorded for charity alongside Michael Ball and the NHS Voices of Care Choir. The song reached number one on the UK charts last April.
Singer Michael Bublé recorded a version of ‘Smile’ for the funeral, and at Moore’s request, ‘My Way’ by Frank Sinatra was played. A bugler called ‘The Last Post’ to close the service.
A church in Bedfordshire, England, where the family is based, rings Moore’s honor 100 times. A post on Moore’s Twitter account invited his fans to remember him on Saturday with a cup of tea and a slice of Victoria sponge cake
Moore, who served in India, Burma and Sumatra during World War II, on his 100th birthday last year set out to raise a modest £ 1,000 for Britain’s NHS by walking 100 laps from his backyard. But donations poured in from across Britain and beyond as his search went viral, capturing the imagination of millions who were at home during the first wave of the pandemic.
His positive attitude – “Please remember, tomorrow will be a good day” has become his trademark – has inspired the country in times of crisis. Premier Boris Johnson described him as a ‘hero’ in the true sense of the word. ″
He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in July during a socially distant ceremony in Windsor Castle, west of London.
___
An earlier version was corrected to show that the C-47 Dakota was a military transport aircraft, not an aircraft.