Commonwealth Games 2022: Peterborough City Hospital volunteer chosen as torch bearer

A volunteer at Peterborough City Hospital has been chosen as a torch bearer for the Commonwealth Games after dedicating his life to helping others.
Commonwealth Games torch bearer Tony King.Commonwealth Games torch bearer Tony King.
Commonwealth Games torch bearer Tony King.

Tony King, 82 from Longthorpe, has been volunteering in Chaplaincy and the Outpatients Department at the hospital for 24 years and was recently chosen as one of the local torch bearers for The Queen’s Baton Relay Route on Saturday July 9.

Tony has been volunteering for various organisations since he was 20 years old and comes from a family of volunteers, with his late mother, late father and late wife all dedicating their free time to helping others.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He has helped with a variety of organisations and events from stewarding for his local concert hall, as a scout leader, fundraising for Cancer Research, governor for the local school, local road and cycling events and for national events including the Commonwealth Games in 2002 in Manchester, London 2012 Olympics, Rugby World Cup in 2015, World Championships in Athletics in 2017 and Cricket World Cup in 2019.

He said: “I have always enjoyed helping other people and I enjoy giving back to the local community, by dedicating my free time to others. I come from a family of volunteers, so it is something that I have been brought up with.

"I have been given many amazing opportunities including meeting royalty at the Queen’s Garden Party at Buckingham Palace and other national events for our country, so being asked to be a torch bearer for the Commonwealth Games is another wonderful opportunity which I will never forget.”

When Tony retired in 1997, it meant that he had more opportunities to help others and joined the hospital volunteers in 1998. He is now one of the oldest members of the volunteering team, alongside 373 active volunteers aged from 16 through to 90.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Carol North, Head of Volunteering at Peterborough City Hospital, added: “Tony is an invaluable member of our team. He knows every inch of the hospital and is always looking at different ways he can try to help our patients coming in for their appointments.

"Our Outpatients department sees hundreds of patients a day and Tony’s role is to make sure they are in the right place, at the right time and comfortable. He also helps the staff by taking patients to other areas of the hospital if needed and training other volunteers. We are incredibly proud of him and would be lost without him.”

This year’s Commonwealth Games are being hosted in Birmingham and run between Thursday July 28 and Monday August 8.