National icon Captain Sir Tom Moore was laid to rest at his family plot in Yorkshire today and images have revealed an incredible final message marking his final resting place.
The message, inscribed into the headstone that sits at his grave, reads simply: “I told you I was old.”
An army veteran, the Captain raised millions of pounds for NHS charities during the first wave of the pandemic last year as he walked laps to mark his hundredth birthday.
He then became a national sensation as he walked 100 laps of his garden in the fundraising effort, with millions of people tuning in to watch his progress and donate towards the cause – raising £32 million in total.
Many called him a national hero for his fundraising efforts, which helped put tens of millions of pounds into NHS charities at a time when the service was in desperate need.
Now he has been laid to rest next to his grandparents at their family grave at Morton Cemetery in Keighley, Yorkshire.
Before he was laid in his final resting place, the Town Chaplain of Keighley presided over a short service for the Captain’s family and the Lord Leiutenant of West Yorkshire, Ed Anderson.
At the service, Moore’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore spoke of the pride he had in his hometown and shared how he would love to be back within the bounds of West Yorkshire.
She said: “It didn’t matter where he was, this was still home to him”
“For him to be back here in the hands and the arms of the local community, I know that made him so happy, so we’re really happy too.”
A guard of honour also pulled up on two double-decker buses, carrying representatives from local rugby team Keighley Cougars, the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway and the Bangladeshi Community Association.
Reverend Pritchard, who led the service, spoke of his “intense privilege” at performing the service, calling him an “extraordinary man.”
Captain Sir Tom Moore was made into an honorary colonel last month for his charity fundraising efforts, having already received a knighthood from the queen in the summer of 2020.
Featured image.- PA
