William Earl Smith of Sanger, Texas, is trying to convince the government he's alive and well after Meals on Wheels workers showed him what they thought was his obituary, according to a Fox and Friends report Friday.
It's not the first time he's been confused with someone else. The same thing happened to Smith while he was stationed in Korea. In this instance, another William Earl Smith died and the still living Smith had his social security check returned:
FOX Dallas-Fort Worth reports:
William Earl Smith, 81, goes by Bill, and he and his dog, Mr. Baxter live in Sanger.
On Christmas Day, Smith got some disturbing news -- Meals on Wheels workers told him that they'd learned he was dead from an obituary.
"She kept looking and said directly, ‘Oh, oh! You're on here deceased,'" said Smith.
After clearing up the confusion, Meals on Wheels workers brought Smith a meal and what they thought was "his" obituary.
"Well, it was a little bit of a shock, but I knew I was still walking around," said Smith.
Not long afterward, Smith's found out that his social security check had been returned.
Smith comes from a long line of Earls, and he had been confused with a man who shared the same exact name.
"He was actually William Earl Smith," said Smith. "Mine's William Earl Smith, my dad was Earl Smith, and his dad was Earl Smith."
Smith says the first time something like this happened was when he was stationed in Korea.
"I was actually mixed up with another guy that was William Earl Smith, and I like to have got sent to the wrong place."
Neighbors are happy Smith is still around.
"The government can mess things something up in five minutes and it'll take them, six months to fix it, if they ever fix it," said Smith's neighbor, Ray Deborde.