Barbara Gillespie, 72, is a retired lunch lady who worked at Domino's to make ends meet.But the great-grandmother was finally able to retire this week thanks to the generosity of others.
A South Carolina firefighter and his family have helped raise over $240,000 for an elderly Domino's employee.
Barbara Gillespie, 72, is a retired lunch lady who worked at Domino's to make ends meet. But the great-grandmother was finally able to retire this week thanks to the generosity of others.
Firefighter Kevin Keigher and his wife Lacey met Barbara after she fell while delivering their dinner.
The fall was captured on the couple's Nest cam, and showed that the delivery worker's concern at the time was that she had ruined their food.
Lacey and Kevin say that they decided to create a GoFundMe after hearing Barbara's story.
"When I see someone her age that is still having to work, not just because they want to, but because they have to," an emotional Lacey tells Inside Edition. "I see something like that happen, it just really upset me."
They say that the next day they arrived at Barbara's work to bring her flowers, and the news that they had created a GoFundMe campaign for her that had raised $50,000 overnight. To date, more than 15,000 donations have poured in totaling $241,893.
"I was so awestruck," Barbara tells Inside Edition. "I thought it was in a dream. I still, today, have to keep pinching me."
The fund continues to grow, and Barbara can start to enjoy retirement. "I handed in my resignation today," she tells Inside Edition.
She is also now part of the Keigher family, Kevin and Lacey tell Inside Edition. They say that their children even call her Grandma Barbara.
Related Stories
