Plumber hailed an ‘angel’ over heartwarming gesture for 91-year-old customer

A plumber’s incredible gesture for a 91-year-old woman with leukaemia has gone viral after the woman’s daughter shared the simple but heartwarming message he left after he was called to fix her boiler. Christine Anne Rowlands took to Facebook last week to explain that there was “big drama” after her elderly mother’s boiler began leaking.

Christine’s sister managed to get in contact with a plumber named James Anderson – from Burnley in Lancashire in the UK – who was able to drop in quickly and fix the issue. When Christine asked James how much his services would cost, he told her he would email her the invoice.

He followed through on that promise but Christine was surprised to find that he didn’t charge her or her mother anything to fix the two leaks.

“Lady is 91 years of age. Acute leukaemia. End of life care,” he wrote. “No charge for this lady under any circumstances. We will be available 24 hour [sic] to help her and keep her as comfortable as possible.”

The post has since gone viral and Anderson has appeared on British television to talk about why he helped the woman. It actually turns out he helps many older people in need by offering cheap or free services through Disabled & Elderly Plumbing and Heating Emergency Repair (DEPHER) – a not-for-profit company he set up in 2017.

Speaking on UK breakfast show This Morning about the business, the 52-year-old said he offers his services because it simply needs doing. He explained: “There’s too many elderly and disabled people. They don’t like asking for the help, they don’t like asking for support so if there’s a company there that can offer the support and taking away the stigma of them feeling like they’re being a burden, then that will save a lot of lives. It will save a lot of suffering.”

Elsewhere in the interview, he also confirmed he sold his own business and has gone on to help more than 2,000 people in need, but that the company relies on donations from the public to continue servicing the community.

https://twitter.com/Depheruk/status/1174464756524171264

Anderson also set up an online crowdfunding page four months ago with an aim of raising £4,000 (AU$7,318, US$4,985) to help people in need. The page has since received more than £22,100 in donations, which Anderson says will protect vulnerable people from being ripped off.

“We witnessed a Plumbing and Heating company trying to overcharge and scam an elderly and disabled gentleman out of a total of £5500.00. We arrived in time, he called us for a second opinion – we spent 45 minutes with him repairing his boiler that was not dangerous, as he was led to believe by this other Plumbing and Heating company,” a message on the crowdfunding page read.

The company not only fixes boilers, but assists with other plumbing and heating repairs, fixing broken toilets, providing gas safety inspections, assisting with frozen pipes and cooker installation. People from all around the world have praised Anderson for the work he does.

One person on Facebook wrote: “He deserves the publicity he is getting now, it restores your faith in human nature. Well done Sir, kindness and compassion to a vulnerable person who so needed your help.”

Another comment read: “We all hear about the bad things people have done, It’s a pleasant change to hear something good. Well done to James Anderson for your good deed god bless you,” while a third added: “What a great person. If every company offered this help to the elderly and vulnerable it would be fantastic.”