A Houston, Texas family was struggling to pay for a funeral they couldn't afford, and got a big surprise while trying to raise the money for expenses.

Get our free mobile app

In the past month, Jennifer Simpson and her aunt Tara Roderick have been trying to raise money to give their grandfather, Jerry Roderick Sr. the service that he deserved, but money was a problem.

JJ Watt Steps Up to Help

According to KWTX, Simpson was doing various things to raise the funds needed for her grandfather's service, including holding bake sales and making various appeals on social media. She said he left behind no life insurance and had no other money coming in to cover his burial costs. Finally, Simpson decided to sell a pair of her JJ Watt women’s edition Reebok shoes, along with a Houston Texans jersey of Watt, by posting them on Twitter. That's when she got a surprising response from the Arizona Cardinals defensive end himself. (Spoiler alert: this tweet may make you tear up a bit.)

According to KHOU, Watt was as good as his word. He quickly sent the money over PayPal. The family was shocked and amazed, saying that Watt "lifted a burden off of us", while adding how grateful they were to the hundreds of other people that have helped them as well.

Other Donations From JJ Watt

This isn't the first time Watt has helped those in need. After Hurricane Harvey, he made a donation of $100,000, while also setting up an online fundraiser to help victims. The fundraiser Watt started raised almost $42 million, according to CBS News.

This Temple, Texas DoorDasher Helped an Elderly Woman Get Fresh Start

Shelby Moeller never imagined that an odd request while delivering for Door Dash would lead to a life-changing experience for him as well as an elderly woman who needed more than food.

He described his initial encounter on Facebook, thanking people who offered to help the 78-year-old woman he named 'Jane Doe' to protect her privacy. On March 20th, he was able to share some amazing news on Facebook.

"Many of you probably remember my post last week about door dashing and coming across an elderly woman in deplorable conditions. When I made the post, I was thinking that I just needed to raise awareness that our elderly right here in our community are often alone, forgotten, and in need of help. I never imagined that through my post, God was going to provide a small but mighty army of volunteers that would jump in and save Jane Doe."

Jane Doe had to be moved out of her apartment while biohazard disinfecting was done by Spotless Crime Clean. All furniture, carpet, and most of her possessions had to be thrown away. There was also no edible food, as everything in the kitchen was either expired or infested with insects.

Shelby was able to spend some time with the woman, who he described as his 'new adopted grandma'. He learned about her background, and how she had struggled throughout her entire life, being reduced to having nothing multiple times. She had developed some hoarding behaviors, and he believed that some of that was due to her fear of losing everything again.

Take a look at the before and after photos of the amazing transformation of her home that changed a Central Texas woman's life and helped her start over in a healthy environment.

Hook ‘Em! 7 Celebrity Graduates From University of Texas at Austin

When you think of the University of Texas at Austin, what comes to your mind first? Is it celebrities? Of course, some celebrities are more vocal than others about their alma mater. Matthew McConaughey lets everyone know where he came from, so no surprises there. The actor is also a Professor of Practice at the university's Moody College of Communication, and graduated in 1993 with a Radio/TV/Film degree from UTA.

Aside from McConaughey, you might be surprised at some of the famous people who picked up a degree in the Lone Star State's capital city.

More From The Basin's Classic Rock