An 88-year-old Michigan grocery store worker who captured hearts worldwide has received a staggering $1.77 million from generous internet donors eager to help him retire. The Army veteran, Ed Bambas, broke down in tears when Australian positivity influencer Sam Weidenhofer, who shared the octogenarians heartbreaking story of grief and financial struggles online this week, presented the life-changing check at a private ceremony at Foguth Financial Group in Brighton, Friday afternoon. Thank you oh my God, Bambas said after the big reveal, according to a video shared by WXYZ.
I wish my wife were here, but its something that dreams are made out of, trust me, from my beginnings to here. Until Friday, the widowed senior had no idea a GoFundMe launched Monday by the content creator had raised the eye-popping fortune. Weidenhofer said the massive payout was one of the largest individual fundraisers in GoFundMe history. Bambass story went viral this week after Weidenhofer on a US Kindness Tour through Christmas, walked into a Meijer grocery store in Brighton on Nov. 25 and met the elder employee, who tearfully revealed he had been forced to work full-time as a cashier to make ends meet after losing his pension.
The father of two told the Melbourne influencer that he retired from General Motors in 1999 only for the company to go bankrupt in 2012, wiping out his pension and insurance. At the same time, his beloved wife of more than 50 years fell gravely ill, according to the touching video posted on Instagram Monday. This left him drowning in debt, forcing him to sell his home just to make it through. The thing that hurt me the most was when my wife was really sick and when they took the pension, they also took the health care coverage and all but $10,000 of my life insurance, Bambas said in the video. After his wife, Joan, died seven years ago, he had no choice but to return to a 40-hour workweek.
Weidenhofer told The Post Thursday that he first learned of the hardworking grandfather when a follower commented his name, age, and workplace on a video, prompting him to visit the supermarket, about 45 miles west of Detroit, and find the cashier, who had worked there for nearly six years. All I knew was that he was a man in his 80s and he was working at the grocery store, the digital personality said during the phone interview. I didnt know he was struggling. I just wanted to highlight how amazing he was for working at that age. I never thought this would happen. Lexi Wallace, a 26-year-old Meijer shopper, was the one who tipped off Weidenhofer about Bambas and joined his family at the heartwarming ceremony. He deserves it, she told WXYZ, adding that he earned it, its all him, for sure. Weidenhofer said the whopping funds were placed into a trust that Foguth Financial Group will now manage to help Bambas plan for his newfound wealth.
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