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Woman raises over $336,000 for homeless man who gave her his last $20

A woman has raised over $336,000 for a homeless man who gave her his last $20 when she was left stranded on the side of the road.

Kate McClure was driving home in Philadelphia on night when she noticed that she had completely run out of petrol.

Lucky for her, homeless man Johnny Bobbitt Jr., who used to be a firefighter/paramedic with the US Marine Corps, told her to get back in her car and lock the doors, before he spent his last $20 on petrol for her.

A woman has raised over $336,000 for a homeless man who gave her his last $20 when she was left stranded on the side of the road. Photo: GoFundMe
A woman has raised over $336,000 for a homeless man who gave her his last $20 when she was left stranded on the side of the road. Photo: GoFundMe
Johnny couldn't believe the amount of money that was raised for him. Photo: GoFundMe
Johnny couldn't believe the amount of money that was raised for him. Photo: GoFundMe

Kate has since taken to GoFundMe to raise funds for Johnny so he can set up a new life for himself.

“Johnny sits on the side of the road every day, holding a sign,” Kate wrote on the GoFundMe page.

“He saw me pull over and knew something was wrong.

“He told me to get back in the car and lock the doors.

A few minutes later, he comes back with a red gas can. Using his last 20 dollars to make sure I could get home safe.”

Kate said that Johnny never asked her to repay him but she returned the next day and many times since, giving him back his $20 and some food and clothes.

However, she wanted to do more and decided to crowdfund “to get him first and last month’s rent at an apartment, a reliable vehicle, and 4-6 months’ worth of expenses”.

Johnny Bobbitt Jr. used to be a firefighter/paramedic with the US Marine Corps. Photo: GoFundMe
Johnny Bobbitt Jr. used to be a firefighter/paramedic with the US Marine Corps. Photo: GoFundMe

In the past 12 days the money has come in thick and fast from people wanting to help Johnny get out of his bad situation.

So far, the page has raised $336,000 (US$256,566) and Johnny couldn’t be more appreciative.

Kate posted a video to her Facebook page when the total was only at over $1000 and Johnny said it would change his life forever.

In a recent update, Kate showed Johnny in a hotel room to celebrate Thanksgiving while he decided where his new home will be.

Johnny spent Thanksgiving night in this hotel room while he decided where he wanted to live. Photo: GoFundMe
Johnny spent Thanksgiving night in this hotel room while he decided where he wanted to live. Photo: GoFundMe

More recently Kate put up a post saying Johnny had asked her to take down the page.

“He asked, instead of donating to his campaign, to maybe take a second to search for another worthy cause that, for whatever reason, hasn’t gotten the attention his has,” Kate wrote on the GoFundMe page.

However, it’s now back up and running as people were still trying to donate money to Johnny.

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