ANDERSON, Ind. — An Anderson man known for collecting millions of pull tabs for the Ronald McDonald House has died.
Larry "The Can Man" VanNess died Monday at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis, three weeks after he was seriously injured when he was struck by a vehicle while crossing the street on Oct. 2.
His caregiver, Rachel Landers, told our partners at the Herald Bulletin VanNess had developed infections after surgery to repair his femur on Oct. 3. She said in a Facebook post Monday morning VanNess' health began to decline on Monday and he became "totally dependent on the machines" before he passed.
He was 75 years old.
Members of the Anderson community are doing something special to honor the local legend.
To keep his legacy going, Restoration Church at 1217 Meridian St. in Anderson, has set up a pop tab collection site outside the front door of the church where people can donate in VanNess' honor.
VanNess led a difficult life into his adult years. He was homeless at the age of 16 and battled addictions.
“He had a life of substance abuse and making bad decisions,” Landers told the Herald Bulletin. “It came to a point that Larry turned his life around and focused on doing good for other people."
"I'm a tabaholic now, instead of an alcoholic. A tabaholic. I was a drunk. I was homeless since I was 16," VanNess told 13News in 2016.
In 2003, he began collecting tabs for Ronald McDonald House after a conversation with a family in a park, the Herald Bulletin reported. His quest went into overdrive when someone dared him to collect a million tabs.
By the time 13News visited with "The Can Man" in 2016, he had collected over 11 million tabs. In the last six years, that total more than doubled, the Herald Bulletin reported, to more than 25 million tabs.
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Indiana put the total at over 27 million tabs.
"Larry may not have had children of his own, but he cared deeply about the mission of RMHCCIN and the people it served, and often shared that collecting pop tabs gave him purpose," the charity posted on Facebook Monday.
VanNess personally raised thousands of dollars for the Ronald McDonald House in Indianapolis. By 2016, he had raised more than $6,000, which has helped dozens of Hoosier families have a place to stay while children are being treated at a medical facility.
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Many of the businesses VanNess visited on his daily walk to collect tabs joined in lockstep with him. Some gave him small bags and others trash bags - all full of tabs.
The pop tab program had generated $820,000 since its inception in 1995 and no one has raised more money than "The Can Man."
Landers said funeral arrangements for VanNess would be announced at a later date.