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On Friday, February 3, Lacey Klein began a fundraiser for Barbara Gillespie, an elderly Dominos delivery driver injured while delivering food to Klein's family home. The fundraiser has since raised more than $120,000 of a $200,000 goal.
In the footage of Gillespie's fall, which has since gone viral on TikTok, she can be seen struggling to get on the Klein household's porch while delivering food. She subsequently stumbles, falls, and drops the food. A member of the Klein household quickly rushes to her aid, helping her up.
While Lacey Klein did not confirm the nature of Gillespie's injuries, she said that the elderly delivery driver was more concerned about the food than herself.
The Klein family rallies around Barbara Gillespie
In an official GoFundMe post, Lacey Klein explained her reason for helping Barbara Gillespie in the aftermath of her accident.
Klein wrote:
"Hi, my name is Lacey and my husband and I are trying to fundraise for our Dominos delivery driver Barbara. Today she took a rough fall on our front porch while delivering our food."
She added that Barbara is indicative of the many older American citizens who continue to work due to their financial circumstances.
She said:
We would like to bless her by bringing by a “tip” to help her with anything she may need. She is an older woman who fell and only cared about the food she dropped. Let’s show her some kindness and take off some of this burden that our economy is causing the older generations especially!! Thank you all"
In additional footage, the Klein family can be seen visiting Barbara at her workplace, where the children bring her flowers. Klein's young daughters can be seen giving flowers to Gillespie, who seems elated to see them. At the time the video was made, the fundraiser had already received $70,000 in donations.
The aging American workforce
While Barbara Gillespie's case has garnered attention due to her age, she is not an exception in the American workforce. As per Yahoo, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projections reported that the American retirement age is rising and that the labor force of those aged 75 or older will almost double by 2030.
After the 2020 corona pandemic, many elderly Americans experienced financial insecurity. Bloomberg reported that one of the many reasons is inflation, which has meant many retired Americans cannot rely solely on their pensions to survive, pushing them back into the workforce.
PWC reported another factor aggravating the issue is the high percentage of Americans without retirement savings. As stated by Fortune magazine, the nation's population is also rapidly aging as birthrates decline. A University of Virginia study calculated that by 2040, the average age in America would be 38.6.
