Maryland TikToker raises money to help Navy veteran retire

CUMBERLAND, Md. - A random act of kindness can go a long way, especially during the holiday season.

Look no further than the Walmart in Cumberland, Maryland.

"I just wanted to put something in motion and the lord did the rest," said Rory McCarty.

McCarty is 53, a resident of Western Maryland, and has a following on TikTok for his bug extermination business, often posting videos of creepy crawlers he finds in people’s homes.

Business has boomed because of his TikTok, telling FOX 5 he has business all over the DMV because of it.

But last week, he came across a TikTok that got his attention, and inspired him.

A customer encountered an older employee and started a GoFundMe to raise enough money to retire early.

Inspired, McCarty was looking for his stranger.

He found Butch Marion.

"Went to Walmart. Got some batteries. Then boom, ran into Butch," McCarty said.

Marion is 82, a Navy Veteran, a father, a grandfather.

Marion had a job at General Motors, but retired so he could help take care of his ex-wife’s husband.  After he passed away, Marion says he took care of his ex-wife, who also passed away.  

Marion had to go back to work, on his feet, multiple days a week at Walmart, greeting customers with a gentleness over the years that’s resonated with many, including Rory McCarty.

"Imagine if someone raised that kind of money for you," McCarty asked Marion in a now-viral Tik Tok, seen over 2.6 million times.

"Woo!" Butch responded.

Monday, a GoFundMe was formed. 

By Wednesday afternoon, it reached it’s goal: $100,000.

"I mean, it’s just all a blessing. It’s a miracle. It’s a miracle Christmas, what can I say?" Marion said of this act of kindness.

Marion still can’t believe McCarty chose him, still can’t believe this is all real.

"Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart, and I mean that sincerely. You’ve just made me overjoyed," Marion said of McCarty and the nearly 4,500 people who donated.

The largest single donation as of this writing was $3,000.

Marion says this money will help him pay off bills.

But Marion says he’s excited to be able to see his daughters and grandkids in Florida he hasn’t seen for years, and just being able to relax.

"I’ll have nothing but my utility bills, and it’ll give me time to sit on the riverbank and fish, drink a couple cold beers, and that type thing," Marion said.

"I am so excited for him, you know, to see something like that, for him, you know? I’m just excited to be a part of it," Rory McCarty said.

Click here to donate to the cause.