A TikToker has doubled down on his family’s claim that they don’t have the money to cover his medical bills after he fell off a waterfall in Hawaii during an illegal hike.
Caleb Coffee, 18, and his influencer family sparked backlash after his father Jason Coffee solicited $100,000 in donations to pay for his medical expenses.
The teen, who has 11 million followers on TikTok and a million on Instagram, hit back in a video from his hospital bed on Sunday, insisting: “I don’t have the money to pay for this, and my family doesn’t have five houses and a mansion.” .’
But Caleb is known for posing online with his dad in social media posts endorsing several big brands, including toy gun maker Nerf and streaming service Discover Plus.
The GoFundMe has raised over $27,000 at the time of publication on Monday.
TikToker Caleb Coffee has doubled down on his family’s claims that they don’t have the money to cover his medical bills after he fell on a hiking trail in Hawaii that was closed to the public
The TikTok star who has more than 11 million followers on the social media site is currently in an ICU after falling off a cliff and landing straight into a bed of lava rocks in Hawaii.
In his video responding to the backlash, Caleb said, “I don’t want to get into this, but I need to get that many people out there, and I want to start by saying that social media is spreading a lot of misinformation. over there.
“What I can tell you is – I don’t have the money to pay for this, and my family doesn’t have five houses and a mansion, we only have one house.
“And I’ve been on social media for maybe 10, 15 years, but that has nothing to do with where I am in my life right now.
“I’m just a human asking for help, and you can help me or you can’t help me, that’s your choice, but if you could take half a second and put yourself in my shoes.”
Caleb, whose face still has bruises and stitches, added that his sister started the GoFundMe as her way of helping when “she wasn’t sure” her brother would survive.
He concluded, “I just want to be able to live my life after this and not be in debt.
“If you want to help me, thank you, if not, don’t worry, but please think before you speak and speak kindly of others, because that’s really all you have — what you say.”
The teen slipped and fell from a 20-25-meter cliff onto a lava rock before being airlifted to hospital on Wednesday.
His response comes after his father Jason shared the GoFundMe, writing, “Unfortunately, Caleb had no medical insurance and we can’t afford these medical bills, so we’re having this funded by me.” We thank you for your prayers, Mahalos.’
The family first said Caleb’s injuries included a spinal fracture, but then shared an update that said, “Fortunately (he) has no neck or spinal injury.
Caleb’s dad Jason — who has done Instagram ads for major companies including Kellogg’s, Nintendo, Discovery, and Jimmy Dean — has proudly monetized and branded his kids, with 765,000 followers on Instagram.
He regularly posts ads in which he grins from ear to ear as he sells junk food, dog food, computer games, streaming services and breakfast cereals.
The family was paid to promote Discovery’s then-new streaming channel – Discovery Plus – even including their pedigree puppy in the performance
The trio teamed up with Nerf to promote a new model of the Nerf Blaster gun, with Jason Coffee sporting his trademark grin.
Caleb should recover from his injuries, which he sustained while walking through an area where the public is not allowed to go. But the Coffees’ brazen begging for money has angered many followers, who have seen the family regularly post ads likely to net them tens of thousands of dollars apiece.
‘You are clearly not a poor family. Why should we pay for Caleb’s health care when you were too irresponsible to insure him?’ wrote Steven Pierce, a London-based food influencer and journalist.
“YOU WILL NEVER SET UP A GO FUND for me,” another wrote.
DailyMail.com has been unable to confirm the Coffees’ Hawaii address, but the family regularly flaunts their lavish lifestyle, with daughter Peyton seen in a garish clip showing a brand new iPhone coming out of the box.
Caleb and his sister Peyton, who has 2.4 million Instagram followers and 16 million on TikTok, regularly participate in paid ads shared mainly on their father Jason Coffee’s page.
The family has been documenting parts of their lives online for years, and the two eldest children in particular have built up a huge following of people interested in following their various outdoor adventures.
Caleb in particular is known for his dramatic physical stunts and intense focus on physical fitness.
Recently, the family moved back to Hawaii from Texas where they had previously lived for a few years.
While the exact finances of the family are unknown, comments came in from users who seemed surprised that the family needed help.
Jason Coffee has been an online influencer of sorts for nearly two decades.
He started including his kids in his content when they were very young and he still had a Vine account.
It’s unclear how much they earn from placing ads on their accounts, but content creators can usually expect to be paid between $0.10 and $0.30 per ad view.
Ads posted on Jason’s Instagram usually get several thousand likes.
Caleb’s TikTok videos usually get millions of views.