Over $700,000 raised for man who woke up to find he lost his wife on their wedding day
Generous donors have raised more than $700,000 (over £550,000) for a man who lost his wife on their wedding day and suffered serious injuries himself.
Aric Hutchinson and Samantha Miller were enjoying what should have been the happiest day of their lives on 28 April but they were involved in a serious car crash just after leaving their wedding reception.
According to a GoFundMe set up by Aric's mother Annette, the newlyweds were being driven from their wedding reception in Folly Beach, South Carolina, in a golf cart driven by her son-in-law and grandson when tragedy struck.
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Their vehicle was allegedly hit from behind by a drunk driver going over the speed limit, with Annette saying the golf cart was 'thrown over 100 yards and rolled several times'.
Aric suffered serious injuries in the crash and faces a 'long road to recovery', but tragically Samantha died from her injuries sustained in the crash, Charleston County Coroner confirmed.
The GoFundMe was set up in the hopes of raising $100,000 for Samantha's funeral and to cover the cost of Aric's medical bills, but donors have raised more than seven times that amount since it was set up.
People are giving what they can to help and some donors have pledged thousands of dollars towards the fundraiser for Aric and his family.
Annette later addressed the vast amounts of money raised, writing: "We never could have imagined how sharing our story would result in the tremendous outpouring of love, support, and overwhelming generosity we have received from friends, family, co-workers, and strangers."
She went on to say that the family was 'missing Sam more than anything' while Aric had returned home to continue his recovery from two broken legs, broken bones in his face and spine, brain bleeds and other serious injuries.
Aric had required surgery on his face and one of his legs as part of his recovery.
On 8 May she wrote that her son-in-law Benjamin Garrett was still recovering in the burns unit after undergoing surgery to clean his wounds, and noted that he will need another skin graft later.
Annette wrote that her grandson Brogan had only suffered minor injuries and she hoped that with the right support he could 'get through the trauma of having been involved in this horrific accident at 17'.
Over 18,000 people have donated to the family's fundraiser to amass more than $700,000 and the family thanked everyone who had contributed.
Joe Harker