"I can't constantly take and not give back" Homeless veteran who received over $360K now wants to pay it forward - Sirealsilver

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"I can't constantly take and not give back" Homeless veteran who received over $360K now wants to pay it forward

PHOTO: Homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt is pictured on Nov. 25, 2017 during an interview with 'Good Morning America.' (ABC News)

A homeless veteran, who received a reward he never expected after he spent his last $20 to help a stranded woman buy gas, now says he wants to touch other people's lives the way his was touched.
Marine Corps vet Johnny Bobbitt reunited with the woman he helped, Kate McClure, for the first time on TV in a heartwarming interview that aired Sunday on "Good Morning America."

PHOTO: Kate McClure and Johnny Bobbitt reunite for the first time on TV after Bobbitt helped McClure when her car broke down two months ago on I-95 exit ramp in Philadelphia. (ABC News)

McClure, 27, has raised more than $360,000 for Bobbitt after he helped her buy gas when her car broke down on the I-95 exit ramp near Philadelphia.

Bobbitt, 34, said he's been "overwhelmed" by people's generosity.

"I just got her gas to help her get back on her way. I didn't think anything about it. I wasn't expecting anything in return," he told "Good Morning America." "That's how I got the money to start with -- from other people. [I had to] return the favor. I can't constantly take and not give back."

McClure, who ironically works for the New Jersey Department of Transportation, was driving into Philadelphia's Center City district to meet a friend about two months ago, she told "Good Morning America."

VIDEO: Young woman repays homeless veteran who used last $20 to buy her gas (ABCNews.com)

It was close to midnight and she was driving alone on I-95 when her car ran out of gas as she was on an exit ramp.

"I pulled over to the side of the road as far as I could and I was going to get out and walk to the nearest gas station because it was not that far away, and that's when I met Johnny," she said. "He walked up and he said, 'Get back in the car. Lock the doors. I'll be back.' I was just like, 'OK."

McClure couldn't believe what happened next. Bobbitt used $20 he had collected from panhandling that day to buy her gas. He even filled her car up.

"I almost couldn't believe it," McClure added. "I said, 'Thank you...I swear, I'll be back. I promise I'll be back to give you [the] money back.'"

PHOTO: This photo depicts the underbelly of the I-95 exit ramp near Philadelphia, where Johnny Bobbitt and his friends slept (ABC News)

McClure said she and her boyfriend, Mark D'Amico, made several visits to Bobbitt at that fateful exit ramp where her car broke down, delivering gift cards, cash and toiletries.

Then one day, the couple decided to create a GoFundMe to raise money so Bobbitt wouldn't have to spend the upcoming holidays sleeping out on the street. Their initial goal was $10,000. They had no idea that their crowdfunding efforts would eventually total more than $360,000 by Saturday.

"I wasn't expecting it," Bobbitt said of their generosity. "[I was] just helping someone out...I was glad to offer the help when somebody needed it."

PHOTO: Kate McClure, homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt and McClure's boyfriend Mark D'Amico reunited for the first time on TV. (ABC News)

Bobbitt and McClure have since formed a friendship. It's been a welcome development for the veteran, who was sleeping under a highway just four days ago.

In fact, he had to wear sunglasses during his interview on "Good Morning America" Sunday due to an eye infection caused from wearing contact lenses too long while living on the street. "You don't have comforts of home," Bobbitt said. "Normal things become struggle."

"It does get kind of lonely out there. People treat you differently ... when you're homeless," he admitted. "People don’t look at you the same."

Bobbitt said McClure and D'Amico, however, "treat me like a regular person."

With more than 12,000 people donating to Bobbitt to help him get back on his feet, many are wondering what he plans to do with the windfall. Bobbitt said along with securing a place to live, and perhaps buying a used truck, he's thinking long and hard about it.

PHOTO: Kate McClure and Johnny Bobbitt reunited for the first time on TV after McClure raised over $360,000 for the homeless veteran. (ABC News)

"I want to change my life, but you know it just happened," he said. "I need to time to figure it all out."
McClure, a Florence, New Jersey, resident, has also arranged meetings with a financial planner and a lawyer to help the veteran.

"I just want to do the right thing," Bobbitt continued, noting that he plans to donate some of the money to organizations that help those in need.

"This money was given to help me. Why not help other people in similar situations or people that are actively helping other people in different situations?" he said.

"Everybody out there is facing some kind of struggle, so if I can touch their life, the way mine was touched, [it'd be] an amazing feeling," Bobbitt said. "I want to feel the feeling on the opposite end."


Culled from Good Morning America 
"I can't constantly take and not give back" Homeless veteran who received over $360K now wants to pay it forward Reviewed by sirealsilver on November 27, 2017 Rating: 5 A homeless veteran, who received a reward he never expected after he spent his last $20 to help a stranded woman buy gas, now says he...

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