A New Hampshire woman surprised a veteran with an online fundraiser that has gone viral and raised over $446,000 in just three months.
Jenelle Marie, who requested not to share her last name for privacy reasons, told "Good Morning America" she met a man named Donald, a veteran, several months ago when he started stopping by U.S. Gold and Pawn, the Manchester pawn shop where she works.
"He started coming in and he was pawning his wife's jewelry. And I kind of took an interest in him because he was 90 years old and he was struggling financially and I saw his veteran ID," Jenelle, 31, recalled.
According to Jenelle, Donald, who also requested not to share his last name, told her he was having financial troubles, and on top of that, his rent was being raised and his wife had been diagnosed with dementia.
"It sparked my interest and made me talk to the owner of the pawn shop, and he said that he was not going to take interest from him moving forward. So, we stopped taking interest from Donald, and I wanted to do a little bit more," said Jenelle, who subsequently started an online fundraiser for Donald.
At first, Jenelle said she set a $1,500 goal, about the amount Donald typically came into the pawn shop for, and was able to raise approximately $1,300 in about a month.
She and her fiance, who manages the pawn shop, surprised Donald with the $1,300 in August, ahead of Donald's 91st birthday. Jenelle shared a TikTok video of his reaction, which quickly went viral and has now been viewed over 15 million times since Aug. 7.
"I definitely never thought this would happen in a million years. Like, I thought to hit $1,500 would be amazing. … and then, a couple hours later, when it was double that, I was like, 'Oh, my God, this is so great,'" Jenelle said.
The TikTok posts about Donald and his story have since spread even further and the fundraiser has now surpassed over $446,000.
Donald, whom Jenelle described as a "very humble man," had "no idea" about the fundraiser initially, Jenelle said.
"I'm so overwhelmed. I really don't know what to say," Donald told ABC Manchester affiliate WMUR. "Something like that has just never happened to me before."
Donald declined to speak with "GMA" but said he wanted to be interviewed by local media to raise awareness for other veterans like him.
"God bless all of them, because they are rare, exceptional people willing to step out and help somebody else. I think that's the most wonderful thing in the world," he said.
Jenelle also said she wanted to shine a spotlight on veterans and also to show that "the smallest act of kindness could really have a huge impact on people."
"It's not even just about the money that was raised. It's about all the kindness from people, just even their well wishes and people sharing the story," she said.
