GoFundMe Saves 108-Year-Old From Assisted Living Home Eviction

Thanks to the kindness of over 900 strangers, 108-year-old Carrie Lou Rausch will not be evicted from her current senior living home. Rausch, who had been living in her home in Columbus, Ohio until she was 105, was moved into assisted living at Sunrise on the Scioto in Arlington by her daughter Susan Hatfield. She lived there happily for three years until she faced eviction due to her dwindling funds and the facility’s rejection of Medicaid.

Hatfield decided to reach out to the Facebook community for help with a GoFundMe campaign she created on October 9 called Keep Carrie in Her Current Home.

“I am starting this campaign for my soon-to-be 108 year old mother,” Hatfield wrote in the post. “She has been a resident of a Columbus assisted living facility for almost 3 years, after moving from my family house which she and my father built in 1935. Unfortuantely (sic), she has outlived her assets, and her current facility does not accept Medicaid as a payment source. Without the funds to stay where she now calls home, she will have to move to a nursing home setting.”

The page was shared over 2,000 times with funds pouring in over three months from 22 states and raising $55,477 – well over the projected $40,000 goal. According to Hatfield, the funds raised for her mother are to be used solely for room and board at her current residence for one year.

“At this time, when there is so much hostility and division and self-centeredness in the country, that this many people can show care for a total stranger, this renews my faith that humans are good,”Hatfield told CNN. “That has been amazing for my whole family.”

During the course of the fundraiser, Hatfield posted an update of her mother being honored by the Franklin County Commissioners for “A Long and Productive life.”

Not everyone who saw the post were empathetic to Hatfield’s pleas.

One user commented, “No disrespect to you, but why don’t you take your mother home with you???”

Another defended, “To all of you saying that her family should “take her home” with them…stop it. At over 100 years old, I’m sure that Carrie needs some day to day, and possibly around the clock, assistance, or monitoring.”

Hatfield assured questioners that despite Sunrise On The Scioto rejecting Medicaid, they were giving her mother the best possible care.

“I want to make it clear that the residence where Mom is living, Sunrise on the Scioto is not a villain in her situation,”Hatfield wrote. “Sunrise provides a great atmosphere with stimulating activities and outings, and the caring staff treats her like a queen, including organizing the recent birthday.”

Now Rausch can happily celebrate her 109th birthday next January in the comfort of her chosen home. Her daughter concurred, “She’s going strong. I don’t think that another year is beyond a possibility.”