Wichita Woman Was Scammed by a $2,000 Tree Service. Then, TikTok and a Mowing Service Came to her Rescue with GoFundMe: ‘Humanity is so Amazing’

Elderly people are oftentimes targeted by scammers, and the outcomes would usually be devastating. Debbie, an elderly lady from Wichita, has an unkempt yard. SB Mowing (@sbmowers) gave her a visit and cleaned her yard for free. When they heard about Debbie’s tragic experience, SB Mowing shared the story on TikTok.

Debbie’s yard was heavily weeded. There were overgrown plants and clutter outside the house. According to her, the yard was mowed last fall—which explains the state that it was in in the video.

“I feel embarrassed by it all,” she told Spencer, the founder of SB Mowing and SB Pressure Washing. He’s known to give free cleaning services to those in need.

“Then, I had some bad people take advantage of me,” Debbie revealed. “A tree service.” Spencer censored the company that allegedly defrauded Debbie. But it’s a local tree service in Wichita.

“I had to put a $2,000 deposit down, and they never showed up,” the elderly woman said. “They had one excuse after the other, and so they took my $2,000.” Debbie’s situation is so dire that at one point, she and her dogs had gone without food for days.

To make matters worse, Debbie’s husband recently died of pancreatic cancer. She was his sole caretaker.

SB Mowing comes in to help Debbie out

“I plan on getting this place looking good for you. I want to help out as much as I can,” Spencer promised. Upon hearing the story, Spencer gave Debbie a hug. He noticed that there was a lot of stuff in her yard. Although Debbie planned to go on a yard sale to get rid of the items, Spencer decided to buy them from her to donate to others who might need them.

“I don’t want you to do that.” Debbie was in tears. “You’re doing enough.”

“I want to do it!” Spencer insisted, saying he would pay Debbie for all the items. She eventually agreed to his offer.

“Thank you, Spencer, so much. And thank you, Zach, for sending me Spencer,” Debbie said, crying about the help she was getting. Zach, an Uber driver, was alarmed by Debbie’s situation after he helped her carry her groceries to the backdoor. That’s when he saw the elderly lady’s sprawling yard, with grass nearly as tall as he was. Because he was fresh from a knee surgery, Zach emailed Spencer about Debbie, hoping Spencer would be able to help her out instead.

Spencer got to cleaning Debbie’s yard with his dad. It was not an easy task—they spent two days clearing the yard. They even had to use a compact tractor to get some of the debris out of the way.

But Spencer didn’t just clean her yard. SB Mow It Forward, his nonprofit, covered three months of Debbie’s back rent. He didn’t leave it at that—Spencer also put up a GoFundMe for Debbie to help with her dental care and health expenses.

TikTok gives Debbie a boost through GoFundMe

“Even $5 goes a long way,” Spencer said.

TikTok commenters were upset at the tree company that supposedly scammed Debbie. One commenter wrote, “I never thought I’d ever have beef with a tree service in Wichita.”

Another joked, “Spencer. Tell us the name of the tree company.”

Others praised Spencer as well as Zach, the driver who informed him about the situation. A TikTok user wished for Zach, “That man’s an earth angel. May his cup never be empty, may his soul always be fulfilled, and may fortune smile upon him and his loved ones.”

But many more TikTok users wanted to help Debbie. A dentist from Wichita commented under Spencer’s video, saying, “I’m a dentist in Lincoln, Nebraska. I know it’s a 4-5 hour drive. But I would be extremely blessed to help her in anyway I can! Let me know what you guys need! That way her donations could go to her other needs, other than dental!”

A pastor also said, “Hey!! Pastor here in Wichita! Happy to get Debbie connected with some resources longer term if it would be helpful.”

What Spencer didn’t expect was for the video to go extremely viral, along with the GoFundMe link. As it stands, Debbie currently has more than $600,000 in donations. One commenter reacted, “Humanity is so amazing.”

When Debbie was informed about the GoFundMe, she was in tears—thankful to Spencer, Zach, and everyone who has offered her help. Not all heroes wear capes—some come with lawnmowers and in Uber rides.

(featured images: SB Mowing)

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