Fate of Eric Dane’s GoFundMe Revealed After Donations Were Abruptly Halted as the Fundraiser Came Under Scrutiny
Jason Pham
Eric Dane’s GoFundMe page has officially been verified after it came under scrutiny when it didn’t list a beneficiary.
Dane, best known for his role as Dr. Mark “McSteamy” Sloan” on Grey’s Anatomy, died on Thursday, February 19, from ALS, a nervous system disease that worsens over time and affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, causing the loss of muscle control.
The day his death was announced by his family, a GoFundMe campaign was launched in the name of Dane’s teenage daughters, Billie and Georgia. The fundraiser, titled “In Honor of Eric Dane,” was created by an account identified as “Friends of the Dane Family” and sought $500,000 to support Dane’s family. Soon after it was created, however, the page was placed under review, with donations temporarily held by GoFundMe’s payment processors while the organization verified the campaign’s organizer and beneficiary.
“Our Trust and Safety team is still looking into this GoFundMe and has reached out to the organizer to gather additional information,” a spokesperson for GoFundMe said in a statement at the time. “All funds are being safely held by our payment processors during this review process.” GoFundMe, which allows third parties to create campaigns, routinely reviews fundraisers to verify organizers and beneficiaries before releasing funds.
By February 22, however, Dane’s GoFundMe had been verified with his widow and the mother of his daughters, Rebecca Gayheart, named as the beneficiary. As of February 23, the GoFundMe had raised more than $300,000 from over 3,000 donors, including celebrities like Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, who donated $27,000 along with his wife Ashley Levinson, and Hailey Bieber, who donated $20,000.
Mike McGuinness, who described himself as Dane’s longtime friend, later confirmed that he was the one who created his GoFundMe in an Instagram post. (McGuiness’ name does not appear on the fundraising page.)
“TL;DR. My friend of almost two decades just left us after a brutal battle with ALS. I’m the positive spin guy and can come up with something hopeful in most any situation. This one broke me. I had nothing to say, it’s about as hopeless an affliction one could get. I truly don’t know if I could muster grace or dignity in that spot. Eric did,” he wrote along with a series of photos of him and Dane. “Candidly, I didn’t know he had it in him. Since I had very little perspective to contribute on what was clearly a death sentence, the best I could come up with was to ask him if he had anything on his bucket list. He did. Eric said he always wanted to go to Tokyo, so Tokyo we went. Half of Hollywood moved mountains to get us a magical experience at the Oasis show so he could just be one of the guys at a concert with his pals and not feel like wheelchair guy. It was awesome.”
He continued, “We had 4 hour breakfasts daily where I got to hear about his life and updated mindset in a unique way. Enclosed are some happy pictures from that trip. Eric said he couldn’t fix the past and the future was too hard to think about, so he was forced to be in the moment. On top of that, his hands didn’t work, so he couldn’t be on a phone. So in the moment he was. I will forever be grateful we went on that trip and for what it taught me, both from Eric’s perspective and getting to watch true service and selflessness, as Jeff did 99% of the heavy lifting on a trip with his friend who required around the clock care. We laughed hard, we cried hard, and we saw very little of Tokyo, but I learned more about my buddy in that week than the other 1000 times we hung out combined. Love the ones you’ve got.”
Dane first revealed he was diagnosed with ALS in 2025. Less than a year later, his family released a statement announcing his death. “With heavy hearts, we share that Eric Dane passed on Thursday afternoon following a courageous battle with ALS. He spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world,” the statement read. “Throughout his journey with ALS, Eric became a passionate advocate for awareness and research, determined to make a difference for others facing the same fight. He will be deeply missed and lovingly remembered always. Eric adored his fans and is forever grateful for the outpouring of love and support he’s received. The family has asked for privacy as they navigate this impossible time.”
