A man in Detroit who faced a brutal commute of 21 miles on foot every day to get to and from work has seen donations flood in after his story went viral.
James Robertson has received an incredible amount of support and is overwhelmed by everyone's reaction to his plight, after his story went viral and a crowdfunding page was set up to help him, and the level of donations has been unbelievable.
The campaign is currently at over $270,000 (€242,000) to help Robertson get a new car, but he might not even have to spend the money on that after a number of dealerships in the area also offered to give him a vehicle for his daily commute.
His job, in Rochester Hills, is over 23 miles away from his house, so every day he gets a bus part of the way there, and has to walk the rest, going 8 miles by foot in the morning and 13 miles by foot on the way home from his shift, which finishes at 10pm, meaning that he can't get the last bus. Between the commute and his job, it took up 22 hours of his day, leaving him working on just two hours of sleep a night.
Robertson seems to be dealing well with his new found attention however, and speaking to the Detroit Free Press he said "They say Los Angeles is the city of angels. That's wrong. Detroit is the real city of angels, I have to be careful how I act about this - the same God who brings you all these blessings can take them away, but hopefully I'm ready for what happens."
The page was started by a college student named Evan Leedy (19), who was inspired by his story, When the two finally met on Monday night, Robertson said to him "I'm always going to be in your debt. I will never forget this".
While he could pick some seriously top of the line cars with his new found wealth, Robertson says he just wants a Ford Taurus (about $27,000), adding "I'm a Ford fan. I remember the Taurus. They look comfortable, nothing fancy. They're simple on the outside, strong on the inside - like me".
Blake Pollock, the man who brought the story to national attention by contacting the newspapers and would offer Robertson lifts home when their paths crossed, is going to use his knowledge as the vice-president of UBS Bank to help him manage the fund properly, saying that they want to avoid people leeching off him, and that "he deserves to feel good and he deserves to not walk 20 plus miles to work. We don’t want to change his life. We want to enhance his life"
Robertson also added that he hopes his case can highlight the fact that there are others like him, and that the city needs to look at improved bus routes, accessible public transport and affordable housing near jobs.
