Susie and Bob Fraser, 79 and 82, are both suffering from ill health but they are forced to work exhausting shifts in a pub just to pay their rent in a home they believe is dangerously unsafe14:09, 05 Jun 2026Updated 07:23, 09 Jun 2026An elderly couple are working 15-hour shifts in a pub just to survive — all while living in a damp home with a collapsed roof.‌Susie and Bob Fraser, 79 and 82, from Devonport, Plymouth, had “ran out of hope” until a young man from Northern Ireland, who has built up an online community for his random acts of kindness, decided to pay them a visit last week.‌Niall Donnan, from Newcastle, County Down, has travelled the world where he has offered hugs to thousands of strangers. The 24-year-old has helped a homeless man get off the streets in the process — and he recently started his Hug&Help campaign.‌Speaking exclusively to us, he said: “From hugging strangers across the world, I’ve found that everyone needs a hug, everyone needs a moment of connection, and it’s something so beautiful.“I just love the idea of Hug & Help because you are offering someone that moment of connection that maybe they haven’t had in a while — and you are helping to change their life. I am so excited to see where it goes.”‌Susie and BobThis takes us on to Susie and Bob whose daughter, Jojo, 55, recently messaged Niall on Facebook.She sought his advice on how she could help her mum and dad after failing to get support from the authorities about her parent's desperate living conditions.Just 48 hours after reaching out to Niall, the young lad was on a plane from Northern Ireland to Plymouth, leaving the family “shocked”.‌He recalled: “Susie came up to me and hugged me without knowing what was going on and when I told her that she had been nominated for the Hug & Help campaign she broke down in tears. But it was happy tears.“They told me that for years they had been in this ongoing battle and they had ran out of hope — and the reason she was crying was because she had this hope again.”‌Niall has raised awareness about their situation and started a GoFundMe to help — which has already gained around £3,000 in donations.Unlike most people their age, Susie and Bob have been unable to retire, and they require their pub jobs to pay their private rent and keep on top of bills.‌However, recent times have been particularly challenging, especially given Susie suffered a heart attack. Despite this, she is still working six days a week for exhausting 15-hour shifts.Bob meanwhile is a proud veteran who served in the Royal Navy for 12 years but he is now struggling with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and the impacts of an aneurysm in his head.‌After finishing work, they return home to an unsafe property, and they now eat, sleep and cook in just one room, the only one they say is without damp.Two days ago, their roof "completely gave way” and Niall spoke to us about what the money on his fundraiser will go towards.He said: “The most urgent thing is their living conditions. They have holes in their roof and the house is damp, it is very very unsafe, especially with Bob’s condition.‌“There was really bad rain and the water just completely seeped in through, part of the roof came down, so the biggest most obvious thing is to get them into a safer place.”It is hoped they will be able to fundraise for a deposit so Susie and Bob can live a more stable and dignified life somewhere else.‌The couple have been blown away by the reaction to the fundraiser and Bob “keeps saying he still doesn’t understand why someone wants to help him”.They are the first people to take part in Niall’s Hug & Help campaign and he thanked every individual who has donated.Article continues belowAnd in a final message, Niall, who can be contacted on his social media accounts (@niall.donnan), said: “We have raised around 3,000 so far, I would encourage if there was any brands, companies or businesses out there that want to make a real impact and want to be part of changing real people’s lives then we would appreciate them getting in touch or making some sort of donation would be absolutely incredible.”To make a donation to the GoFundMe page, you can do so here