Glen James proves doing the right thing pays off. James, a former courthouse clerk who has been homeless since 2005, found a backpack that contained $42,000 at the South Bay Mall in Dorchester, Boston Saturday.
It contained $2,400 in cash and $39,500 in travelers checks. He handed the backpack over to an officer. He told the Associated Press: “Even if I were desperate for money, I would not have kept a penny.”
Ethan Whittington, touched by James’s integrity, starting a Go Fund Me crowdfunding campaign to raise money for James. As of 10:30 a.m. EDT, the campaign had raised nearly $130,000 of its $250,000-goal.
James has been staying at a local homeless shelter. The Good Samaritan said James lost his job and became homeless after he had problems with his boss. He has had trouble finding a new job, he said, because he experiences vertigo.
Whittington wrote when he started the campaign: “Lets all chip in and help this man change his life. Every little donation helps. Lets be reassured that there is still hope and humanity in our great nation.”
Many donations ranged from $5 to $50. One donor wrote: “Glad to help such an outstanding citizen have the opportunity to change his luck around!”
Another wrote: “Nice to know this will make a difference to somebody who deserves it.”
