The late army veteran died from coronavirus aged 100 in February after raising more than £32 million for the NHS amid the coronavirus pandemic, and his family are hoping the public will come together to generate funds by taking part in a challenge based around the number 100 over the April 30th to May 3rd bank holiday weekend.
Captain Tom’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore said: “This is to ensure that that message of hope is his lasting legacy.
“He gave us hope, so we’ve got to keep hope going. He said to us, ‘This is yours. I started it, now do it your way.’
“My father was insisting right until the very end.
“He was insisting he was going to come back out and keep walking and raise money.
“So how can we not do it? He gave us hope as a nation.
“He represented us around the world as a beacon of hope. He’s passed the mantle on to us.”
Tom – who would’ve turned 101 on April 30th – raised millions for the NHS after walking 100 laps of his garden before he turned 100.
His family are now encouraging others to take part in their own challenges, and some of their suggestions include running 100 metres, baking 100 cakes, writing a 100-word poem, or building 100 sandcastles.
Hannah added: “We want people to go crazy and create their own 100 – a challenge around the number 100.
“Because he was 100 and he was so proud to be 100.
“We thought of whether it should be 101, but it’s definitely 100 because that year he lived being 100 was the best year of his life, almost certainly.
“I really hope people see this [100 challenge] for what it is, which is an absolute chance to bring joy, put money back into charities and support the Captain Tom Foundation, which after all is the legacy of hope that he’s left us.”
