Michael Bambas told the New York Post his father, Ed, was deeply moved after a video interview of him talking about his struggles swept across the internet, the Post reported Thursday.
“I know what this is going to mean to him and that it’s going to change his life immensely,” he told the outlet on Wednesday.
Australian influencer Samuel Wiedenhofer met Ed while he was working his shift as a cashier at the Meijer grocery store. The elderly gentleman works full-time at the store to make ends meet, a result of losing his pension. His beloved wife died seven years ago; her medical bills took most of their money even after he sold their house.
After serving his nation in the military, the elder Bambas worked and then retired from General Motors in 1999, per Fox 2. However, when the company went bankrupt in 2012 he lost his pension and healthcare coverage.
“The thing that hurt me the most was when my wife was really sick and when they took the pension, they also took the healthcare coverage and all but $10,000 of my life insurance. So I sold the house. Sold the property I had, and we made it through,” he explained, adding his wife died after developing atrial fibrillation.
His story went viral online and a GoFundMe page created to help the veteran has since raised $1,580,456 as of Thursday afternoon.
Thanks to the generosity of many, Ed will be able to retire and enjoy his life. The funds will be given to him during a surprise ceremony at work on Friday, the Post article said.
“Since my mom passed, I’ve been trying to help him where I can financially, so it’s going to be a major burden taken away,” his son said. “He’s gonna have a lot of relief in all this.”
Breitbart News
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