Let the memes fly…
Pawn Stars star Corey Harrison, the son of World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop owner Rick Harrison, is turning to his fans for help paying his medical bills following a near-fatal accident earlier this year.
Back in January, Corey suffered severe injuries in a motorcycle accident in Mexico, breaking 11 ribs while also walking away with a concussion and facial injuries.
According to TMZ, he spent two weeks in the hospital before checking himself out due to the cost of his medical bills. But he then began suffering from complications that led his oxygen levels to drop to dangerously low levels, leaving Corey concerned that he was going to pass away because he couldn’t afford treatment. As his friend recalls:
“In a heartbreaking moment that shook all of us to our core, Corey looked at us and said, “I’m just going to die out here. I don’t have the money to keep paying these people.””
He eventually found a facility that was affordable enough to undergo three surgeries, while spending an additional 18 days in the hospital.
Meanwhile, the younger Harrison was forced to miss his father’s wedding after the accident, and is now facing over $100,000 in medical bills and expenses.
Harrison says he still receives occasional residual checks from Pawn Stars (I would hope so, because I’m pretty sure that show’s on The History Channel 24 hours a day), but that he’s now completely removed from the show. So he’s turned to fans for help.
A GoFundMe set up for Harrison by one of his friends says that the television star has emptied his bank account:
“Friends, including myself, maxed out credit cards just to keep his treatment going. Being on television and part of Pawn Stars fame doesn’t come with a built-in safety net for emergencies like this — medical crises don’t care about celebrity status.”
It also says that Harrison is three months behind on rent, facing ongoing medical bills, and unable to return to the United States for treatment due to his injuries.
Harrison says that he doesn’t like turning to GoFundMe and asking fans for help, but he feels like he’s out of options:
“What am I going to do, fly out to Vegas and sell stuff? I can’t move from my recliner.”
And I know what you’re probably thinking: His dad’s rich, why doesn’t he help him?
Well Corey says that he’s already in debt to his dad, and it doesn’t sound like their relationship is in a great place right now. In a statement to TMZ, Rick Harrison basically said that his son is on his own:
“Corey is a grown man and he will deal with his life as he sees fit.”
Yeah, reading between the lines, it’s pretty clear that dad isn’t going to be helping out.
As of right now, the fundraiser has only raised around $1,500 of its $100,000 goal.
Such a terrible situation, especially since it sounds like Harrison and his father aren’t on great terms right now. Hopefully Big Hoss can recover and make it back home soon.
