A family in Tennessee, USA ordered Starbucks and their smart doorbell captured that the delivery person was a 78-year-old man. At the request of thousands of strangers online, a fundraising campaign was launched and nearly $950,000 (about 3.71 million ringgit) was ultimately raised for this elderly man and his unemployed wife.
The customer traced the deliveryman’s address and went in person to give him a $200 tip (about 782 ringgit). Later, at the request of thousands of strangers online, a fundraising campaign was launched and ended up raising a huge sum for the elderly couple, changing their lives.
According to CBS News, the customer who ordered Starbucks, Brittany Smith, hardly ever checks her smart doorbell, but that day her quadriplegic ex-husband ordered Starbucks drinks for their daughter, causing her to notice the delivery footage. She saw 78-year-old Richard slowly climbing the home’s stairs to deliver the food. She then posted the video and commented: “He should be at home resting, moving just a bit every day to keep mobile, but still working? No, I really don’t know. We should help him.”
After viewing the delivery video, Brittany and her ex-husband decided they had to find Richard. She said: “I was really upset at that moment, thinking, how could this poor elderly man be delivering Starbucks to my perfectly healthy daughter?”
Someone later recognized Richard and provided his last name. Brittany drove around searching for the vehicle shown in the video. She finally located Richard living just about five minutes’ drive from her home and visited him in person, handing him a $200 tip on the spot.
It turned out Richard used to work in insurance and retired 13 years ago. But after his wife lost her job, he had to return to work as a delivery driver, sometimes working as long as 12 hours a day. He said he needed to support the family, so he started taking delivery jobs, which allowed the couple to pay their bills.
The next morning, Brittany launched a GoFundMe page titled “Let Richard Rest Again.” Within just a few days, she raised over $950,000 for the couple, who have been married nearly 56 years.
Richard expressed deep gratitude for everyone’s support. He said he still wants to continue delivering food, but will not do so as frequently as before, because working makes him feel better.