RIP Capt Tom. I can't claim to be as sad as some on here, because he was 100 after all, but he had a fabulous last year on earth, which was well deserved after his fund-raising efforts for the NHS. It was great that he got the recognition without seeking it, unlike some of the self-serving gits we have to stomach these days. One of the good guys...
Not many left of that generation now. They are truly a different breed of man whose like we are unlikely ever to see again. The war didn't break these men, it made them. They were frightened of nothing, almost unbelievably humble about the sacrifices they made to ensure our freedom and prosperity. RIP Captain. Thanks for everything you did, then and in your last year.
I doubt I'm alone to find the actions of Tom's family, particularly the daughter, quite shameful. The worst aspect, for me, is that it will cost charities thousands of pounds. Giving money depends on trust and that trust has been broken. When I've collected for Poppy Day, and the Salvation Army, some people didn't give because they weren't confident that the money would go to the needy. I'm sure people who gave to 'Captain Tom' will be feeling a little bit conned. Very poor state of affairs imo.
The £30m or so was wasted mostly too. It was distributed through the NHS network to umpteen different divisions and departments. The money ended up being a drop in the gargantuan budgets and was used for nothing really memorable, which is obviously what should have happened. Maybe a few particular centres of some kind. Now, his memory is sharply coloured by his disreputable daughter.
Aye, most people I know who gave to charities have either stopped or reduced the amount drastically, virtually all the charity bosses are trousering far more than they are worth.
I've said this before, but my mate used to be the chairman of CHUF (Children's Heart Unit Fund) based at Freeman's and he told me how the vast majority of charities work, which is . . . . 93% goes to the running of the charities (paying for admin. & high wages etc.), and 7% goes to the people that need it CHUF work the opposite way around (approximately), like the RNLI, which makes them 'proper' charities worth supporting, but most of the others are operated as mentioned above To me, charities should be operated on a voluntary basis apart from a few that would need to devote a lot of time to run/manage them. I had suspicions about Captain Tom's daughter from the start (and mentioned them at the time), and I'd imagine that he would be so embarrassed about what's happened since he died
I only give to the Salvation Army as my family has been involved for over 100 years. If you're unhappy with any of their actions you can call someone quite senior and ask for an explanation. If I found they were behaving like Oxfam, etc, I'd be disgusted tbh.
Sadly, and I hate saying this, it's even made me wonder about Tom himself. Are the family all similarly inclined, who knows.
I agree mate, I just don’t believe people like myself and my missus who gave to charities just for the sake of it ( we now only give to air rescue and the lifeboats) don’t believe there should be people in these charities trousering £160,000+ and that includes the Sally Army who our family as well have been volunteers since I was a kid, I’ve never liked the SA ever since they did their Sunday morning meet below my bedroom window after I’d had a session the night before or a 4am disco at the Rink
What got me was the defiant look of indignation in the eyes of the daughter as the reporter asked her questions about where the money went. I think she used her dad just the same way she used the people who donated and bought the "Captain Tom" book. Sickening.
She wanted a pool house and anyone who doesn't like it can **** off for all she cares! All charities do similar (as has been mentioned already) most the money goes to inflated running costs and paying massive wages to those at the top. Then try to guilt people into handing over their money!
It's not even as if she was short of a bob or two anyway, which is not an excuse, but the greed for even more, at the expense of mainly people with less money than herself, thinking they were donating to a good cause. Truly nauseating.
I used to give to the RNLI regularly but stopped when it dawned on me what a disgrace it is that it's a charity ... ... why does the population of an island, with a great nautical history, have to rely on butchers, bakers and candlestick makers to rescue them from danger at sea. It's ridiculous.
My fatha died over 20 years ago,and back then and in the 70’s when the Salvation Army used to come around the pubs for donations, he always drilled into me to always make donations to them when I asked why his reply was always “when you’ve got no hope, home or money the Salvation Army are always there for you “
When my dad died my mam spent most of her time with the Salvation Army, it was strange how many of the band lived in our street, put there to torture me I believe
