Influencer Fundraises for 88-12 months-Outdated Veteran’s Retirement
88-year-old veteran Ed Bambas, who has been working as a cashier at a Meijer store in Michigan to make ends meet and pay off medical bills, is now the subject of a viral video and fundraiser.
Following his time in the service, Bambas retired from General Motors in 1999 and was expecting to receive the pension promised to him in order to enjoy the rest of his life alongside his wife, Joan, according to WXYZ Detroit.
Unfortunately, due to General Motors filing for bankruptcy in 2012, the pension he worked so hard for quickly disappeared.
To make matters even worse, his wife got sick, leading to a pile of medical bills accumulating before her death in 2018.
Without his pension and drowning in medical debt, there was nothing else Bambas could do but go back into the workforce.
“It wasn’t hard for me to do it because I knew I had to do it,” Bambas said in an interview with WXYZ Detroit. “I’m fortunate God gave me a good enough body to be strong enough to stand there for eight, eight and a half hours a day.”
Bambas had accepted his situation and did his best to make the most of it, being kind and helpful to his customers despite his personal struggles.
Then Australian positivity influencer Samuel Weidenhofer appeared and featured him in a TikTok video after one of his fans recommended he track Bambas down and see if he could help him.
After speaking with Bambas and getting to know a little about his life story, Weidenhofer then explained that he would share his story online and conduct a fundraiser to help him finally retire.
“It came out of the clear blue — I really truly mean that,” Bambas said of the situation in the same interview with WXYZ Detroit.
Weidenhofer’s video has now gathered 5.7 million views and counting on TikTok with many of those viewers donating to the GoFundMe Weidenhofer set up.
“I’ve never been on those programs,” Bambas clarified, referring to TikTok and Instagram. “I don’t own one of those fancy cellphones. In fact, I still have a flip phone just to talk to people.”
While he may not be able to watch the video himself, Bambas is still immensely grateful for everyone who has expressed their support to him.
The fundraiser has surpassed its $1 million goal and currently sits at a balance of over $1.3 million, but the full amount has not yet been revealed to Bambas.
“I just wanted to give him a chance to retire, you know? At least have some comfort. At first, I thought maybe there would be a little bit of support, but to see how much? It’s record breaking,” Weidenhofer shared with WXYZ Detroit.