Navy veteran with cancer holds garage sale to pay for his own funeral

For several weekends in August, a Pennsylvania man suffering from terminal cancer held garage sales in hopes of amassing enough money to pay for his own funeral. .

Willie Davis was diagnosed with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma – a form of skin cancer caused by an uncontrolled growth of abnormal squamous cells – and had hoped that by selling all his belongings he could be buried next door. from his parents to Culpepper. .

The 66-year-old US Navy veteran did not know that his garage sale would connect him to two strangers who would change his life.

David Dunkleberger and Ed Sheets came across the Davis sale on August 4 and did not think much about it.

"After reviewing the field and noticing a bit of everything, we bought a few items," Dunkleberger told a GoFundMe website that he and Sheets set up for Davis.

When Dunkleberger and Sheets went to pay, Davis asked them to spread the word to anyone who might be interested because he was raising money for funerals.

When Dunkleberger asked for his funeral, Davis responded by saying his.

"We all thought our lives were bad and we were going through difficult times, but imagine that you were afraid of selling all your belongings before you died, just so that you could be buried with your parents," continued Dunkleberger.

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"After thinking about it all day, Ed and I are determined to help this man," said Dunkleberger. He then returned to Davis the next day to "ask permission to help him".

After getting to know Davis, Dunkleberger and Sheets have created a GoFundMe page. To date, they have raised $ 36,900.

"It broke your heart, hearing the story, and we just decided that we had to do something to try to help him, try to make his life a little easier," he said. Sheets at WJAC.

"He served our country a lot, so we wanted to reciprocate him so that, again, his last days could be a little less hectic, a little more peaceful for him," Sheets told the news station. .

When the veterinarian dies, the funds raised will be returned to Culpepper's funeral home so that Davis can have his wish and be buried next to his family.

Dunkleberger also explained that any remaining money will be donated to another veteran in need.