(Facebook) Fred Barley with Debbie Adamson (right), the owner DBs Pizzeria in Barnesville, Georgia, who gave Barley a job as a dishwasher.
After receiving an unexpected outpouring of financial and other material aid, a college student in America finds himself on the defensive after donors began expressing doubts on his character, the Daily Mail Online reports.
Last month, 19-year-old Fred Barley was reported to have biked six hours to get to Gordon State College in Barnesville, Georgia and was seen sleeping in a tent outside the school to wait out the opening of the school dormitory. Barley is a biology major and hopes to go to medical school after college.
The community in Barnesville quickly rallied around him after police found him sleeping in his tent with just a bowl of cereal and some bottles of water. He then told the officers that he was homeless and had ridden his little brother’s bicycle more than 50 miles in the scorching heat of summer to enrol for his second semester in the school.
His story appeared on the community’s Facebook page, tugging at the heartstrings of residents, including Casey Blaney who started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for the young man’s education. In 20 days, donors raised more than $183,000.
Blaney also found a job for Barley as a dishwasher at a pizzeria.
Other members of the community donated clothes, shoes, furnishings, and even a new mountain bike.
However, last week Blaney posted an update on Barley’s GoFundMe page, saying she had asked for the campaign to be reviewed after she started having doubts on Barley’s story. She wrote: “Unfortunately, multiple questions have been raised about Fred’s story.
“We’ve received conflicting information about his initial story, and we just want to make sure the donors and the public have all of the information available to them before the funds are transferred to a trust to pay for his education.”
Debbie Adamson, the owner of DB’s Pizzeria who gave Barley a job, told the Daily Mail Online that Barley had left his job at her establishment and “gone into hiding.”
However, the same news source denied this, saying Barley has actually moved into his dorm room, waiting for classes to start next week.
Barley quickly defended himself over the attacks on his character, insisting that he had not lied about his story.
“I’ve had so many people attack my intelligence, my life, my character, and even more important, my integrity. I have not lied to any of you, nor will I,” he posted on his Facebook page.
“I never intended on being a role model for younger kids, or the nation’s feel good story, but I’m glad God put the responsibility on me because it gives me a chance to say God is real to a much wider group of people,” he added.
Blaney and Barley had clashed over how best to manage the donated money, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Blaney wanted to set up a trust overseen by a professional, but Barley wanted more say over the fund’s management, the news outlet said.
Last Thursday, GoFundMe.com said it has frozen the account of the campaign until it resolves questions about the young man’s story.
