The GoFundMe page for an 81-year-old delivery driver, who was spotted delivering lost luggage on a doorbell camera, has been removed from the website following “factual misrepresentations.”
The digital fundraising website told Global News that it “identified factual misrepresentations” and ended the campaign, which raised over US$700,000 for delivery driver Don Johnson.
According to the original GoFundMe page, a woman named Erin Howell started the campaign to help Johnson, who she said “has been working around the clock delivering luggage to make ends meet.”
But GoFundMe told Global News that it found “misrepresentations” in the campaign.
“Our Trust & Safety team identified factual misrepresentations, which directly violates our Terms of Service,” the platform said in a statement on Monday. “As a result, the fundraiser has been removed and all donors have been refunded.”
“Ensuring GoFundMe is a safe and trusted place to give and receive help is our top priority. Taking action like this allows GoFundMe to protect donors’ generosity and our continued ability to support people who are fundraising to help others,” GoFundMe added.
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“GoFundMe’s policies, along with those of our payment processors, require authenticity and transparency for donors, and are strictly enforced,” the platform said. “Because that standard wasn’t met here, donors were protected under our GoFundMe Giving Guarantee, which guarantees a full refund in the rare case something isn’t right.”
GoFundMe also revealed that it had received a tip from a concerned community member about the organizer of the fundraiser, which led to an investigation.
During the investigation, the GoFundMe team called the organizer of the campaign on a recorded line and told her that the call was being recorded.
When the organizer of the campaign was asked if Don and Josephine Johnson were her parents, the organizer confirmed they are, according to GoFundMe.
The original GoFundMe description for Johnson, an independent contractor who delivers lost or delayed luggage to homes from the airport, claimed a woman had witnessed the man delivering luggage that had been lost on a recent flight.
“He looked absolutely exhausted, and his steps were heavy with effort. It completely broke my heart to see a man of his age doing such intense, grueling physical labor, so I opened my door to meet him and to offer my help. That is when I learned the devastating truth about his situation,” the organizer wrote.
The organizer also said that Johnson isn’t working by choice but “working for survival.”
“His beautiful wife of 57 years, Josephine, is currently fighting a severe battle against cancer. The staggering medical bills, continuous treatments, expensive prescription medications, and everyday costs of living have completely overwhelmed them,” the fundraiser description added.
“At an age when he should be resting and spending every precious single moment by his wife’s side, he is out on the road lifting heavy bags just to keep her alive and cared for.”
After GoFundMe pulled the fundraiser from the website, Johnson’s daughter Amy revealed that she had set up the fundraising campaign under a different name.
Once the GoFundMe page was removed, Amy launched a new fundraiser for her parents on GiveSendGo, where she explained what had happened to the first campaign.
“Hi, I’m Amy. Don is my dad. Josephine is my mom. My mom has pancreatic cancer. The bills are high. My dad is 81 and still works delivering luggage so they can stay afloat. The neighbor story is real. The doorcam video is real. The diagnosis is real. The job is real,” Amy wrote in the description.
“A lot of you already gave on GoFundMe. We are so grateful. That page was originally set up on my account because it was already established and we thought that would be the simplest way,” she continued.
“When the name on the page was updated, GoFundMe treated it as a discrepancy. We offered documentation. They refunded the donations anyway. We know that is frustrating. It is frustrating for us too. Nobody wanted your gift sent back.”
“Nothing about my mom’s treatment changed. Nothing about my dad’s age or his work changed. They still need help,” she added.
The GiveSendGo fundraiser had raised more than $55,000 of its $100,000 goal from more than 1,000 donations as of Monday afternoon.
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Gullible people
The entire notion of these fundraisers are flawed.
No single person should either be reward or denied financial help.
I find this despicable.
…$100 to every senior would be far more impacting.
I would love to donate but in canada, it is mandatory for all Canadians to contribute to the FN Go Fund Me campaign. Most of us will be 90 and still working and paying.
A sucker is born every minute.