As this very contentious 2016 comes to a close, we can all agree that this was a crazy, terrible year for celebrity deaths. We lost so many beloved entertainers this year, in fact, that, as the final hours of this seemingly-cursed year tick down, one man from Spartanburg, South Carolina, Demetrios Hrysikos, finds himself on a mission: Fly to L.A. to protect Betty White from anything that might happen to her until 2016 is officially done.
To support this mission, he’s launched a Go Fund Me crowdfunding campaign that broke its initial goal so fast when he posted the page, that he has already upped the request to $10,000. All of the money (besides whatever expenses he might incur in protecting Betty White, should she accept his offer) will be donated to the Spartanburg Little Theater, a small non-profit theater company. The goal of the donation is that maybe 2017 can be just a little bit happier for some people working in the arts, since the creative community has suffered enough this year.
The 94-year-old Betty White has not yet commented publicly on the campaign, according to Vanity Fair, but the spritely actress and comedian from Beverly Hills got her own first paid acting gig in a local theater here in L.A., so one might imagine she would support the intentions of the fundraising campaign’s organizers. Between stage, film and television, her career has spanned more than 75 years already and, with any luck, we’ll continue seeing her well into 2017 and beyond. Let's just hope Hrysikos doesn't get a restrainer order put against him because of his good intentions.
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