British World War II veteran raises millions for health care workers by walking laps around his garden


Tom Moore raised nearly $15 million for the United Kingdom's National Health Services, and he didn't even have to leave his backyard.
Moore, 99, is a World War II veteran living in Bedfordshire. He will turn 100 years old on April 30, and decided before reaching this milestone, he wanted to do something to thank the "magnificent" NHS doctors and nurses who treated him for cancer and a broken hip. Moore came up with an idea: he would raise money for NHS Charities Together — an organization that supports the medical staff, patients, and facilities of the UK's publicly-funded health care system — by walking 100 laps around his garden.
His original goal was to raise $1,250 for NHS Charities Together, but as word spread, the money came flooding in. In a staggering show of support, more than 600,000 people so far have donated to the cause, raising close to $15 million. NHS Charities Together said it is "truly inspired and humbled" by the generosity.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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