This Man Walks 21 Miles To Work And Back Every Day And Now Others Want To Lend A...

[sheshe2]

This Man Walks 21 Miles To Work And Back Every Day, And Now Others Want To Lend A Helping Hand



After the Detroit Free Press published Robertson's story, thousands responded on Facebook, asking how they could help. Evan Leedy, a student at Detroit's Wayne State University, decided to set up a GoFundMe account to raise money for Robertson to buy a car.

Leedy told The Huffington Post in a phone call Monday he was inspired by Humans of New York photographer Brandon Stanton, who raised more than $1 million to send schoolkids from a crime-stricken neighborhood in Brooklyn on a trip to Harvard.

Initially, Leedy said, he didn't even think anyone would donate. So he set the goal at a modest $5,000. In just one day, however, donations soared to nearly $50,000.

"This is obviously more than just a car now," he told HuffPost. "It can turn into something way bigger than that. Maybe he could use this money to move out and move somewhere else ... We've had a Chevy dealership as well as Honda corporate [reach out]. Both want to donate a car to him. So he can use this money for whatever else he needs."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/02/man-walks-21-miles-work-james-robertson_n_6594246.html?cps=gravity_2691_-7269684560882235964

Here is his go fund me page.

$88,300 of 25k

UPDATE #10
4 HOURS AGO
I cannot thank all the donors enough. This means so much to James and will change his life forever. I've been reading everyone's kind words that they have added with their donation and I want everyone to know that I'll be putting something together so that James can read all the amazing comments you all have written. Thank you for all your support!!

Read More and donate if you can.
http://www.gofundme.com/l7girc

[navarth]

1. great story.

I've been checking on the Free Press site from time to time, really glad to hear about the help he's getting.

[JohnnyRingo]

2. Wow! That's quite a trek

Given the average speed a person walks (3mph), that's a fourteen hour a day commute if he doesn't stop anywhere on the way. Give him eight hours of work and eight hours to sleep, and that leaves him with four hours of free time every day. I'll bet that goes by fast.

I don't entirely get all the walking when he works so far away. Couldn't he at least borrow or buy a bike? Is he just doing this to raise awareness, or is going through a pair of shoes each month really his only option? If so, why work?

[sheshe2]

5. It is linked to.

But as he steps out into the cold, Robertson, 56, is steeled for an Olympic-sized commute. Getting to and from his factory job 23 miles away in Rochester Hills, he'll take a bus partway there and partway home. And he'll also walk an astounding 21 miles.

Five days a week. Monday through Friday.

It's the life Robertson has led for the last decade, ever since his 1988 Honda Accord quit on him.

Every trip is an ordeal of mental and physical toughness for this soft-spoken man with a perfect attendance record at work. And every day is a tribute to how much he cares about his job, his boss and his coworkers. Robertson's daunting walks and bus rides, in all kinds of weather, also reflect the challenges some metro Detroiters face in getting to work in a region of limited bus service, and where car ownership is priced beyond the reach of many.

http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2015/01/31/detroit-commuting-troy-rochester-hills-smart-ddot-ubs-banker-woodward-buses-transit/22660785/

[JohnnyRingo]

16. The distance really got my attention

As someone who walked ten miles once in a failed hitch hiking attempt, I can attest to the incredible fete. I was in my early '20s back then though, and it seemed to take all day. In this man's case it literally must.

If I worked with him, I'd offer to pick him up some days. All week if he could pitch in for his share of the gas. Clearly, anyone who works can afford that, considering the alternative. For $15 he could buy a mountain bike at a yard sale and cut his travel time by two thirds while still keeping active.

I read the subject line wrong. I didn't know he rode the bus part way. I thought he was forced to walk 21 miles each way every day.

[gopiscrap]

3. that is wonderful!

[sheshe2]

4. Yes it is gopiscrap.

Inspiring.

[WillyT]

6. Huge K & R !!! - Thank You !!!

[sheshe2]

7. You are welcome WillyT

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

8. Up to $95,682 - nice story for worthy guy

[giftedgirl77]

9. K&R sheshe

Awesome story, this man deserves everything he has coming to him.

[niyad]

10. k and r and may it lead to even more wonderful things.

[sheshe2]

14. 111K

I posted this at 7PM at 10PM it has rocked 111K! Awesome niyad.

[niyad]

15. whenever I think the human race really ought to go the way of the dinosaur, something like this

happens to restore my belief that most humans are good.

[sheshe2]

26. Someone down thread disagrees.

Lately DU has become uncaring. Ya, It will push James into the 1%....seriously?

[niyad]

29. well, just consider the source.

[Terra Alta]

11. It's over $100K now.

So glad he is getting the help he needs. It's really sad that he has had such a long walk to and from work for the past ten years and for a measly $10.55 an hour. This is why we need a living wage, not just a minimum wage.

[sheshe2]

12. Over 100K! That is wonderful terra Alta.

Yes we do need a living wage. When your rent alone is have your gross, then yes America has a problem. I know this for a fact.

[sheshe2]

13. kicking!

[William769]

17. Kick & highly recommended.

[sheshe2]

19. Thank you William.

[William769]

20. Always glad to do what's right.

[sheshe2]

21. Love you~

[hfojvt]

18. we should donate now?

What's the new goal? To put him in the top 1% for wealth?

Presumably once he got to $50,000 there were a lot of other people needier than him.

[sheshe2]

22. That's cold.

At 10.50 an hour he will never keep his head above water. I know, I don't make much more. When your rent is almost half your gross, where is your food and heat? You heard me right, half your gross!!! Your net is 30% less. So, let's say your gross 30K your net would be 21K. Your rent 1K. Not much left. Without a savings, you are dead or under a god damn bridge.

Yes others need all the help we can give them and a GOP that will pass a god damn living wage!!!!!!!!!!! They need to create jobs and put America back to work. Instead those leaches on life want to target women with more anti abortion measures. How fucked up is that?

[hfojvt]

24. cold?

There are millions of people who make less than $10.50 an hour. Millions who don't make anything, because they don't have a job.

But what the heck, keep donating. Let's get THIS guy a free car, $200,000 in cash and maybe a free house too. The sky is the limit.

[sheshe2]

25. K~

Would you ask the GOP to pass a living wage and a jobs bill? Please do not shit on this thread for one man that caught the attention of many.

Yes there are so many in need and obviously so many aware of that and are willing to give to so many of these people. Sad we have to do it alone when our do nothing congress focuses on women's bodies and their fight, their right to choose. Their right to equal pay for equal work. Blame the right people. Don't blame this man.

I make a small amount more than he does. I know what it is like to live paycheck to paycheck and in the end am left wanting. My thermostat is set at 55 tonight. We had 2 blizzards in less than a week. Four feet of snow. It will be -2 tonight. I cannot afford more heat.

[Barack_America]

23. Bigger fucking bootstraps than any Republican politician in this country.

I'm going to have to imagine this bus drops him off near Pontiac, and he has to walk from there. I cannot fathom a bus line from Detroit going to Rochester Hills; African Americans are hardly welcome in that town.

[MattBaggins]

27. So this guy walked 14 leagues a day and 8 hours of work?

When does he sleep? Never bought a bicycle or a scooter even?

We need fair wages and better transportation and housing options, but that said, this story seems a bit over the top.

[ladyVet]

28. My father used to walk that and more to work and back every day.

Occasionally someone would stop and pick him up, but mostly he walked. Rain or shine, hot or cold. Day in and day out.

In case some of you missed the memo, it sucks to be poor.

That said, I don't get why the fund is up that high, but I wish him the best and hope he can thrive with a little cushion against the hard times.