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Retirement Life

“Legend”: Plumber praised for act of kindness towards elderly woman

A British plumber has been praised for his act of kindness after he was called out to fix an elderly woman’s boiler.

James Anderson from the English town of Burnley was asked to look at a woman’s boiler after it was reported to be leaking.

Once the job as done, Mr Anderson refused to bill her, writing on the receipt that the total cost of the job came to $0.

The invoice was shared throughout social media by the woman’s daughter.

“Lady is 91 years of age, acute leukaemia, end of life care. No charge for this lady under any circumstances,” read the bill.

“We will be available 24 hours to help her and keep her as comfortable as possible.”

Mr Anderson has running Disabled & Elderly Plumping and Heating Emergency Repair (DEPHER), a not-for-profit company, since March 2017.

Since the company was established, Mr Anderson has helped 2389 people.

Speaking to CNN, he revealed that he was inspired to start DEPHER after he saw an elderly man being “manipulated” by another engineer.

“It got me thinking about other elderly and vulnerable people – we need to do something more to help the people who need it most,” he said.

“A lot of elderly and disabled people don’t like asking for assistance and if they can’t afford something like fixing the boiler, they might not do it and get into trouble. We are there to take that worry away.”

The company relies on donations and support from community members, with Mr Anderson close to $14,590 in debt due to this act of selflessness.

He is currently paying off the debt in monthly instalments and said that as long as he had enough money to fill up his car he would “be there to try and help the people who need it”.

Countless people have taken to Facebook to shower praise upon Mr Anderson for his kindness.

“There are some wonderful people in this world. James is one of them,” wrote one user.

“James Anderson, you sir are a legend, in a country filled with hate & greed your humanity shines like a beacon, massive good luck with your business you thoroughly deserve it, you haven’t touch my boiler but you’ve given me a warm glow,” wrote another.

Tags:
plumber, elderly, kindness, donation