A GoFundMe page that Damar Hamlin created in 2020 for a toy drive while he was a University of Pittsburgh student continued to thrive Wednesday in the aftermath of a frightening injury that has left the Bills safety in the intensive care unit at a Cincinnati hospital.
As of Thursday morning, donations had reached over $7 million with more than 220,000 donors.
Hamlin remains in critical condition, the Bills said in a statement Wednesday.
The original goal two years ago had been $2,500. An update to the GoFundMe on Tuesday shared that the foundation will support toy drives, back-to-school drives and kids camps as part of Hamlin's foundation, Chasing M’s. The M stands for millions and his clothing line has the same name. Hamlin passed out Chasing M's hats to teammates Saturday in the locker room after practice.
On Wednesday, organizers posted they were "simply awestruck" and said they were "hopeful about Damar's future involvement in disbursing these incredible generous contributions."
The note said updates were being handled by Jaster Athletes, the organization run by longtime Hamlin friend Jordon Rooney, who serves as Hamlin's marketing representative and become a family spokesman since the incident.
The GoFundMe update read: "We're simply awestruck by the level of support and generosity we've seen over the past two days. With over $6 million raised, this fundraiser has become an overnight reminder of the incredible nature of humankind. Your actions directly reflect the type of human Damar is himself.
"As representatives of Damar, the team at Jaster Athletes posted the fundraiser updates and will work with the Hamlin family, The Chasing M's Foundation, and the GoFundMe team to ensure the safe delivery of funds.
"Because the situation is evolving, we'll continue to communicate any updates on the fundraiser. We will also work with GoFundMe to email all donors with more specifics regarding the use of funds as those details are available. As you can imagine, this has been a challenging time for the family. We appreciate your understanding as we give them the time and space they need to focus on Damar's health first.
"We're hopeful about Damar's future involvement in disbursing the incredibly generous contributions. We thank you again for your support and look forward to updating you along the way."
