72-Year-old Grandma Falls While Delivering Pizzas, Gets Over $240,000 After People See It

When a heartbreaking video of a 72-year-old woman stumbling on the front porch of a house while delivering pizzas surfaced on the internet, people felt bad for her.

Soon, they united in her support, and their kind efforts changed the elderly lady’s life forever.

It was a regular day for senior citizen Barbara Gillespie, who worked as a pizza delivery rider for Domino’s Pizza. Riding around South Carolina and navigating through streets to reach the customer’s house was routine for the elderly woman.

That day, Lacey Klein placed an order for her family, hoping they would enjoy dinner at home. Little did she know that an unexpected incident was waiting for her at her doorstep.

After receiving Klein’s order, the restaurant prepared it quickly, and Gillespie gladly agreed to drop it at the family’s doorstep. Like many senior citizens, Gillespie worked hard not because she liked it but because she needed the money to make ends meet.

While other women her age were enjoying their lives after retirement, Gillespie couldn’t relax at home after working for years as a school lunch lady. Her circumstances forced her to deliver pizzas for a living―a job that required lots of physical exertion.

Gillespie never complained about her life struggles and always showed up at work to fulfill her responsibilities. She worked like her younger co-workers despite having less energy than them because of her age.

As Gillespie approached Klein’s front porch that fateful day, she struggled to walk carrying a pile of food boxes on her right arm while holding a bag with her left hand. All this time, the security camera outside the home captured the elderly lady’s every step.

She could feel Gillespie’s pain and decided to do something to help her.
While walking towards the door, Gillespie put her left foot forward and realized there was a step. She couldn’t see the ground because the food boxes blocked her line of sight, so she relied on her calculations. She put her left foot on the step, then her right foot, but couldn’t hold her balance and landed on the ground.

As Gillespie tripped on the stair, she fell to her right side while the boxes of food flew to the other side. The camera recorded her fall revealing she tried to hold on to the chairs on the front porch to keep her from falling to the ground, but nothing worked.

At this moment, the elderly lady was more worried that she had ruined Klein’s order. She thought she’d hurt herself if the chair’s armrest had hit her face, but her priority was still her customer’s satisfaction.

A few moments later, Klein’s husband, Kevin Keighron, emerged from his house and was shocked to see the elderly delivery woman lying on the ground. He asked her if she was okay, to which she replied:

“I ruined your food. I fell.”

While Gillespie said she was frightened by the incident, Klein and Keighron were shocked after realizing the pizza delivery woman was still working at 72. Klein said:

“It makes me heartbroken to see anyone elderly having to work to keep up with the economy and pay bills when they should be retired and enjoying their lives.”

Klein could relate to the woman because her father and father-in-law also used to work before they passed away. She could feel Gillespie’s pain and decided to do something to help her.

On February 2, 2023, Klein created a GoFundMe page to help Gillespie take some time off work. Before that, she uploaded the security camera footage on TikTok, hoping people would sympathize with the elderly lady after watching her fall. Little did she know that her kind efforts would lead to something life-changing.

Soon, the TikTok video went viral, and netizens generously donated to the online fundraiser. As of this writing, Klein has raised $248,992 through more than 15,400 donations, and the numbers are still growing.

Meanwhile, Gillespie had no idea about this until Klein’s family visited her the next day. Unaware of her viral video and the online fundraiser, Gillespie was shocked to see Klein’s family at her workplace. They gave her flowers and then told her about the GoFundMe page, to which the elderly lady responded:

“I’m going to faint!”

Klein’s initial expectation was that the fundraiser would raise enough money for Gillespie to stay home for a few days. However, the response was so tremendous that it allowed the elderly lady to quit her work for good. Klein posted an update on her Facebook profile:

“Guys!!! Barbara put in her 2-week notice at work yesterday!!! She’s officially retiring! So excited for her.”

After the heartbreaking video went viral, netizens couldn’t help but send messages of support for Gillespie. Here’s what they said:

“That’s a good woman with an amazing heart. The fact that she took a spill that hard and was more worried about ruining the family’s dinner than her actually being hurt shows how compassionate she is. I’m glad she’s now retired! Prayers to her and her new family!”

“What a sweet ending, but it’s such a shame that some of our elderly have to rely on the generosity of strangers online to retire.”

“With all the bad happening in the world today, it’s very nice to hear this story. It brought a tear of joy to my eyes, knowing she and that family now have a relationship, and they call her Grandma.”

After retiring, Gillespie can stay home with her family and enjoy her life and her grandchildren, including Klein’s children who now also call her their grandma and love her dearly. We wish the elderly lady all the best and hope her life brings her nothing but happiness.

Related Posts

Melania Trump’s wedding dress ‘for sale’ on eBay for eye-watering amount

Melania’s opulent Christian Dior dress, designed by John Galliano, from her January 2005 wedding to Donald Trump was listed for sale at $45,000 (or best offer)—a steep…

I ASKED MY NEIGHBOR TO CLEAN UP AFTER USING MY BBQ — THE NEXT DAY, SHE LEFT HER OWN “RULES” ON MY DOOR, BUT I SHUT THAT DOWN. So, about six months ago, a new neighbor moved in — a woman (40) with her son (16). At first, she seemed chill. I even lent her some household stuff and let her use my outdoor grill station when we weren’t home. No big deal, right? Wrong. One weekend, me, my husband and our kids went to visit my parents. We came back, and boom — MY BACKYARD LOOKED LIKE A FRAT HOUSE HAD JUST HOSTED A BBQ APOCALYPSE. Empty bottles, food scraps, grill left dirty like it had survived a grease explosion. I ask her about it, and she just shrugs, saying it was her son’s birthday, so you know, it’s just kids, it’s what kids do. Apparently, I shouldn’t make a fuss over something so minor. Lady, it’s my backyard, not a public park! So, I do the reasonable thing. I draft up three simple rules: 1. If you use something, clean it and put it back. 2. Please, clean up after your child. 3. That’s it. Just be respectful. I hand it to her, thinking we’re all good. THE NEXT DAY, I WAKE UP TO A LIST OF HER RULES TAPED TO MY DOOR. HER rules. For MY property. Spoiler: I didn’t follow her rules. In two weeks, her son knocked on my door and pleaded, “Ma’am, please, stop!” 👇🏼 Full story in the first comment 👇

Camilla allows her new neighbor, Claire, to use her barbecue… until she goes home to a backyard disaster. When Camilla asks for basic respect, her neighbor demands…

MY SISTER TOOK BACK THE CAR SHE GIFTED ME AFTER I UPGRADED IT, SO I TAUGHT HER A LESSON. My older sister sold me her old car for a symbolic amount. It hadn’t run in ages, with flat tires and rust under the hood. But she made a big deal out of gifting it to me. Knowing my way around cars, I invested $5,000 to upgrade everything—new interior, fresh paint, new tires, and wheels. I was thrilled with the result. One morning, as I was about to leave for university, my sister stormed in, DEMANDING THE CAR BACK. I was sh0cked. She claimed her husband’s car had broken down, and since she hadn’t sent the sale documents, the car was still legally hers. She said she had changed her mind. My parents sided with her, arguing that she needed the car for her kids. My first thought was to call the police, but then I had a better idea. I decided to teach her a lesson she wouldn’t forget. I went to ⬇️ Full story in 1st comment

To be honest, I never imagined a beat-up old automobile would become the center of family drama, but here we are. It all began when my older…

A POOR BOY’S LIFE CHANGES AFTER HE PULLS AN OLD, RUSTY CHAIN STICKING OUT OF THE SAND ON A REMOTE BEACH Adam is 13 years old and lives with his grandfather in an old trailer near the ocean. His parents passed away when he was just 3, and since then, his grandpa has been his only family. They don’t have much, but his grandpa has raised him well—Adam is strong, smart, and way more mature than most kids his age. One afternoon, he rode his bike down to the beach, just like any other day. He wandered along the shore, letting the waves tickle his feet—until something caught his eye. A thick, rusted chain lay partially buried in the sand. Curious, Adam grabbed it and pulled—but it barely budged. Whatever it was connected to was massive. From that moment on, Adam became obsessed with digging. He had no idea what he was about to uncover—or how it was about to change his life forever ⬇️

The rusted chain jutting from the sand seemed worthless to everyone else, but to 13-year-old Adam, it promised an escape from poverty. He couldn’t have known that…

THEY WERE PRAYING IN A CIRCLE—BUT NO ONE TAUGHT THEM HOW It was just after snack time, and I was washing out some paint cups when I noticed the room had gone oddly quiet. Too quiet for a group of 4- and 5-year-olds who usually treated volume like a sport. I turned the corner into the play area and stopped in my tracks. Four of them—Niko, Janelle, Izzy, and Samir—were sitting cross-legged in a perfect little circle. Hands held. Eyes shut. Heads bowed. They were whispering something I couldn’t quite catch at first. I thought maybe it was a song or one of those rhyming games they loved. But when I leaned in, I realized they were… praying. Like, really praying. Asking for things. Saying “Amen.” Janelle even crossed herself at the end like she’d seen in church. Thing is, we don’t do any kind of religious activity in our classroom. It’s a public kindergarten. No nativity plays, no Bible stories, nothing. And I’d never seen any of these four talk about faith or even mimic that kind of behavior before. I crouched down and gently asked, “Hey, what are you guys doing?” Izzy opened one eye and whispered, “We’re asking the sky to help us.” “Help you with what?” I asked. Niko just said, ⬇️

It was just after snack time, and I was washing out some paint cups when I noticed the room had gone oddly quiet. Too quiet for a…

Try stretching your ring finger with your thumb and holding it for a few seconds. You’ll be amazed by the reason behind it! (check in first comment👇)

Can we achieve peace and harmony with just our hands? Let’s explore some mudras (hand gestures) and their benefits: Gyan Mudra (Knowledge Mudra): How to do it: Sit…