Flood of donations

After Strache lawsuit: senior citizen helps sick children

This is what solidarity looks like: Veronika F. (68) from Rechnitz has to pay 6,000 euros following a lawsuit by Heinz-Christian Strache. The "Krone" family helped and saved the minimum pensioner from financial ruin.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Privat)

The story of the Rechnitz woman (68), who faced financial ruin after a lawsuit by former Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache, moved the whole of Austria. After the flood of donations, she is now supporting children who still have one last wish.

Pure solidarity: the whole of Austria helped 68-year-old Veronika F. from Rechnitz. Only a few hours after the "Krone" reported on her fate the previous week, the goal was reached. The pensioner had been fined 6,000 euros following a complaint by former Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache because she had shared an article about his divorce on Facebook.

In the end, a total of 7475 euros was collected. "We still can't believe it," says daughter Agnes Riegler in an interview with "Krone". The family started the fundraising campaign because Veronika F., who has a heart condition and is visually impaired, would not have been able to pay the fine from her small pension.

The response was overwhelming. "Everything was collected in just a few hours. It was great to see that the whole of Austria helped," says her daughter.

This is what solidarity looks like: Veronika F. (68) from Rechnitz has to pay 6,000 euros following a lawsuit by Heinz-Christian Strache. The "Krone" family helped and saved the minimum wage pensioner from financial ruin.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Privat)

Many letters and false calls for help
After the huge wave of donations, some people also got in touch to say they were also affected. "We actually wanted to help others who had experienced the same thing," says Riegler. "But when we checked, it turned out that some of the stories weren't true. Unfortunately, there were also free riders." The family decided to check every request carefully. "We wanted to remain fair and respect the donors' trust."

The remaining amount went to terminally ill children
The remaining amount was finally handed over to an organization that fulfils the last wishes of terminally ill children. "We are parents ourselves and know how important something like this is. So we know that the money really gets through," says the daughter.

It's incredible and very touching how much sympathy we received from so many people who were complete strangers to us.

Veronika F. 

The fine has now been paid and the last donations have been received. "Now there is finally peace and relief." "Thank you once again to everyone who helped us," says Riegler. "It was madness, in the best sense of the word. We just wanted to pay the fine and now we can pass on something good ourselves."