Inspired by Capt. Tom Moore, a 5-year-old boy walks on his new prosthetic limbs to raise money for the hospital that saved him as an infant.
Moore, is the 100-year-old World War II veteran who became famous for raising over $37 million for the NHS. He’s back in the news again, but this time as an inspiration to a young boy in Britain.
Tony Hudgell first appeared in the news after suffering abuse from his birth parents, which caused him near-fatal injuries and resulted in the amputation of both legs. Tony, however, was resilient, survived and was eventually adopted by a loving family.
Tony had recently started to learn to walk with crutches when he saw Moore in the news walking laps in his garden. Tony thought that if Moore could do 100 laps in his backyard with his walker, he could do a walk of his own with crutches.
He set out to raise 500 euros for the London Children’s hospital, which is the hospital that saved his life. But that goal was quickly surpassed. Since June, he has raised over 1 million euros and walked over 6 miles.
At first, it took Tony about an hour just to walk half a mile. But with his determined attitude, he was soon walking that distance in 12 minutes.
“It’s incredible to think that just a few weeks ago Tony could barely take a few steps. He is such a strong and determined boy, and we are so proud,” his mother, Paula Hudgell, told the PA Media news agency.