This blogger facing money worries because his wife needed surgery has become an internet phenomenon after a post he wrote about his troubles prompted strangers to send him thousands of dollars.
Here, RT Cunningham, from the Untwisted Vortex blog and pictured with his wife, explains why the online community sent him $3000 and why he promises to "pay it forward". Find out more by watching Wednesday's Sky.Com News at 7.30pm.
No matter how well we prepare for any kind of eventuality, something always sneaks up on us and catches us off guard.
At about 3 am on January 15, 2008, my wife told me (via Yahoo Instant Messenger) she would have to have both tonsils removed as a result of an infection in her left tonsil. A fish bone had lodged itself deep into the tissue and despite taking prescribed antibiotics for over a month, it wasn't getting any better.
I probably wouldn't have written about it at all, except that my wife begged me to come to Phoenix (Arizona, USA) for the surgery. She's 46-years old (I'm 47) and deathly afraid of being "put under" and operated on.
Twenty minutes later, I wrote my first blog post about it, A Possible Disappearing Act. I wasn't asking for anything, just letting people know I might have to be absent for a while.
By the next day, I had received comments on the post, and lots of email messages, urging me to put up a PayPal donation button. I didn't think it would have much of an impact and finally succumbed to the blogosphere peer pressure, putting the button up in the sidebar at 10 am on the 16th. I then wrote what I thought about doing that.
It was the hardest thing I'd ever done -- harder than serving 20 years on active duty in the US Marine Corps.
Since I didn't think much would come of it, I went about my business here and doing the things I normally do and of course, staying in contact with my wife. When I woke up at about 10 am on the 17th, and out of curiosity more than anything else, I checked my PayPal account and discovered I had received $3004.00 USD (after PayPal fees). I then set about removing the PayPal button and again writing about it.
I had discovered that Victor Franqui of bloggerunleashed.com had read the first post and then contacted Darren Rowse of problogger.net. Both of them wrote about it and it caught the attention of hundreds of bloggers. Both of them are respected bloggers and have a huge following. Many other bloggers had followed suit and wrote their own posts about it.
Both I and my wife (I told her about it as soon as I could) were overwhelmed by the generosity shown by our fellow bloggers. Many of them I knew through blog interaction and email contact and many more I didn't know at all. One person alone sent $1000.
Even now, as I wait for the official surgery date from my wife, I am in awe of the generosity and the sheer speed of how quickly it all took place.
In my mind, this is unprecedented - I've never seen this happen before and I've been interacting with people (using different pseudonyms) on the Internet since 1994.
As much as I would like to behave selfishly and continue on like nothing has happened, it's not in my nature to do so. I have no choice but to use available resources to help others in the future. It's now my turn to "pay it forward".
RT is the most generous and genuine person I have interacted with online. And what happened in the blogosphere hearing his story is truly deserving 'coz of all the good he himself bestows on so many people every day.
Posted by: pearl 30 Jan 2008 05:53:24
There is still good people out there,What a story.
Posted by: Monty, Craghead, Co, Durham 23 Jan 2008 10:12:12
Of all the people that I've become acquainted with over the years, I've got to say, that for someone that I've never met in person, I think that RT is one of the best examples of "good people" that one could ever find or know. He's been willing to share good ideas and his programming without any compensation. Its also obvious that he loves his wife. I can't think of a more deserving couple for a good deed. They will "pay it forward", I am sure.
Posted by: 23 Jan 2008 05:18:20
And what a remarkable example of the courage of many a "Soul 2 Soul" just so that we can get "Back To Life, back to Reality".
Posted by: Khalid 22 Jan 2008 21:05:28
It's truly an amazing story, but RT is an amazing person with a very large following. I think he realizes that now. :)
Posted by: Comedy Plus 22 Jan 2008 18:22:34