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Donald Johnson, an 81-year-old man in Texas, continued working as a luggage delivery driver despite his wife Josephine's battle with cancer to cover medical expenses. When resident Erin Howell saw him struggling with a heavy bag, she helped and learned about their situation. She then started a fundraiser that garnered thousands of dollars in donations before it was taken down by GoFundMe for violating its terms of service. The couple’s daughter Amy Johnson shared on TikTok that over $700,000 had been raised but donors were being refunded due to an unspecified technicality related to the platform's policies.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-27,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Donald Johnson, an 81-year-old Texas man from The Colony near Dallas, gained national attention after being seen by Erin Howell on her doorbell camera struggling to carry heavy luggage up stairs while working as an independent contractor for lost luggage delivery. He started the job three years ago when his wife, Josephine, was diagnosed with cancer to help cover medical bills.
The footage went viral and sparked a GoFundMe campaign that initially raised over $281,000 to ease Johnson’s financial burden. However, GoFundMe shut down the fundraiser after discovering that Howell was actually Johnson's daughter, Amy, who misrepresented herself as a neighbor to raise funds more effectively.
GoFundMe stated they identified "factual misrepresentations," leading them to deactivate the page and refund all donations to ensure their platform remains trustworthy. Despite the shutdown, Amy maintained the authenticity of her parents' story but admitted using a pseudonym to connect better with potential donors.
Written for “Texas Delivery Driver GoFundMe Contro…” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 9 other(s) covering the same event.
An encounter with an elderly delivery driver in Texas has captured attention after the reason he was still working came to light.
asserted
he → capture → light
Donald Johnson, 81, was delivering lost luggage to a home when Erin Howell, a resident at The Colony, saw him struggling to carry a heavy bag up a steep set of stairs — a moment captured by her doorbell camera, according to reports.
uncertain
him → deliver → reports
Howell went outside to help and learned that Johnson had been making luggage deliveries as an independent contractor for the past three years to help cover medical expenses for his wife, Josephine Johnson, who is battling cancer, FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth reported.
asserted
Dallas → go → cancer
Donald Johnson continued to work during his wife's medical treatment.
asserted
Johnson → continue → treatment
He was continuing to make deliveries because he had struggled to find other work, he told Howell during their encounter.
asserted
he → continue → encounter
"It's the only job that will hire me," Johnson told her, according to the outlet.
uncertain
Johnson → hire → outlet
Howell shared the elderly man's story online and even started a fundraiser to help with medical expenses and give him the chance to stop working and care for his wife.
asserted
Howell → share → wife
As his story spread, thousands of strangers responded with donations and messages of support.
"
asserted
thousands → spread → support
I think I'm going to be able to stop working, and that's amazing," Johnson told FOX 4.
asserted
Johnson → think → FOX
"So we're not quite totally over the hump yet, but we're getting there very quickly."
asserted
we → get → hump
The outpouring of support and prayers had given her encouragement as she continued her cancer battle, Josephine Johnson told FOX 4.
asserted
Johnson → give → FOX
"I can face it.
asserted
I → face → it
I think that's the big difference," she said.
asserted
she → think → ?
"Some have made comments and they're praying for us.
asserted
they → make → us
The family's circumstances, however, took another turn after the fundraiser was eventually removed from GoFundMe.
asserted
fundraiser → take → GoFundMe
In a recent TikTok video, the couple's daughter, Amy Johnson, said the campaign had collected more than $700,000 — but that her parents would not receive the money because the donations were being refunded due to "a technicality."
Sitting alongside her parents in the TikTok, the daughter said the money that was raised was intended to help cover her mother's medical expenses as she battles pancreatic cancer and would also give her 81-year-old father the opportunity to stop working.
asserted
she → say → opportunity
GoFundMe told FOX 4, however, that its trust and safety team determined the organizer account and fundraiser violated its terms of service.
asserted
account → tell → service
The company did not specify the exact reason for the decision.
asserted
company → specify → decision
It said its policies require "authenticity and transparency for donors."
Fox News Digital reached out to Amy Johnson as well as GoFundMe for further comment and details.
asserted
Digital → say → comment
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