Army veteran Ed Bambas, 88, works full-time after pension loss, donors raise over $1M
BRIGHTON, MICHIGAN: An 88-year-old Army veteran from Michigan has captured the Internet’s heart after revealing he works full-time as a cashier to stay financially afloat, more than a decade after losing the pension he once relied on.
The emotional moment, shared in a viral Instagram video by Samuel Weidenhofer, sparked an extraordinary wave of holiday generosity, with donors raising more than $1 million to help him finally retire.
Michigan veteran lost pension in 2012 and returned to full-time work
Ed Bambas, who works as a cashier at the Meijer supermarket in Brighton, Michigan, said his financial security collapsed when he lost his General Motors pension 13 years ago. “I retired from General Motors in ’99.
In 2012, they went bankrupt and they took my pension away from me,” he told Australian influencer Samuel Weidenhofer in the now-viral Instagram video, which reached 12.2 million views as of Thursday, December 4.
Bambas said the loss came at the worst possible time, right when his wife, Joan, had fallen gravely ill. When the pension vanished, he explained, “they also took the healthcare coverage and all but $10,000 of my life insurance,” describing how the sudden financial blow left him devastated.
He was forced to sell his home and property just to cover medical costs and “make it through.”
His wife of more than 50 years died seven years ago, leaving him not only alone but without the income needed to maintain stable housing. “Once my wife died, I didn’t have enough income to pay for this place or all the other bills I had accumulated because of my wife’s illness,” he told WXYZ in an interview.
Despite being nearly 90, Bambas works full-time, five days a week, completing a 40-hour schedule. But he said he never questioned returning to work because he had no other choice. “It wasn’t hard for me to do it because I knew I had to do it,” he said. “I’m fortunate God gave me a good enough body to be strong enough to stand there for eight (to) eight and a half hours a day.”
Viral video raises over $1M to help 88-year-old veteran retire
The emotional interview prompted Samuel Weidenhofer, known for spotlighting acts of kindness, to tip Ed Bambas $400 and launch a GoFundMe to help him retire. Within days, donations soared past $1.492 million, with tens of thousands of people contributing amounts ranging from a few dollars to major gifts.
Singers Charlie Puth and Russell Dickerson publicly responded to the story, with Puth commenting on TikTok, “commenting to spread the video. I also donated to you sir.”
Weidenhofer said he plans to surprise Bambas with the news once the fundraiser concludes and a secure payout is arranged. The viral video has collected more than five million views on TikTok and over 12 million on Instagram, though Bambas hasn’t seen any of it himself.
“I’ve never been on those programs. I don’t own one of those fancy cellphones. In fact, I still have a flip phone just to talk to people,” the Army veteran said.
