Sign up for the meadowlakeNOW newsletter

Well-wishers donate to keep Ohioan, 108, in assisted care

Jan 16, 2017 | 10:30 PM

COLUMBUS, Ohio — A woman who just turned 108 has another reason to celebrate after well-wishers donated enough money so that she can remain at an Ohio assisted-living facility where she greets people while making the rounds with her walker.

Carrie Rausch’s children nearly used up her life savings to pay for her care and started a fundraising campaign as a last resort. It got a boost after The Columbus Dispatch (http://bit.ly/2iA3qqo ) wrote about her recent birthday.

Hundreds of people donated more than $55,000, with some even sending words of encouragement. It surpassed her children’s goal of $40,000 to keep her at the facility in suburban Columbus for 2017.

Rausch, who lived on her own until she was 105, says in a Facebook video that the donors’ generosity is a blessing.