Alabama man raises over $50k for a Boston homeless good samaritan

A homeless man living in Boston had no idea he would become the talk of a nation after he summoned a nearby police officer to hand over a backpack he'd found with more than $40,000 in cash and travelers checks inside.
There are two reasons why this story renews faith in humanity. First, the simple fact that the backpack was returned when the man could have easily pocketed some quick cash. Glen James got his reward in the form of a special citation from the Boston Police Department, but if he thought that was the end of it, he was wrong.

The second reason comes as Montgomery, Alabama native Ethan Whittington read of James' story and decided to take action.

Whittington, who graduated from Montgomery's St. James School in 2004, has since moved to Richmond, Virginia, though his parents remain rooted just outside Alabama's capital city. In fact, Whittington's mom told officials at his alma mater that she thinks her son learned some of his volunteer ethic from the community service projects he did while in school.

After reading how James found the backpack and money and then selflessly returned it, Whittington was moved to action. A friend had recently told him about a website for crowd-funding and he decided to set up an account.

Whittington started a page on the website GoFundMe.com, jokingly thinking he could raise $300 or $400 for James. "I was going to send it to the P.O. box that it listed on the article I read," Whittington explained.

The outpouring of support was explosive. Within 24 hours, more than 2,000 strangers had donated more than $55,000 to the cause, shocking even the man who started the page. A new, more ambitious goal of $500,000 is now underway.

Whittington says he's talking with an organization that will help him manage the project adding that he's received offers for computers, clothing and possibly even a job and housing for James.

The two men spoke on the phone Tuesday, and both are a bit overwhelmed.

Whittington says he wanted to do something more than just hand over a check to James, that he wanted to positively influence the man's life, and spark others to do the same.

"I feel like, if everybody could come together and create one goal like we've done for Glen, why stop with him? Why can't we influence more people?" Whittington asked.

If you would like to donate, you can do so HERE.

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