Edward Norton has now raised close to $400,000 for Michigan-bound Syrian refugee family

The story of a cancer-stricken Syrian doctor and father of seven in the process of being resettled to Troy, Mich., has raised nearly $400,000 thanks in part to the work of actor Ed Norton.

The story of the unnamed doctor, who lost his wife and a daughter in a missile strike on their house, went viral over the weekend after it was posted on the Humans of New York Facebook page. Even President Obama extended a welcome message.

Writing on the CrowdRise fundraising site he’s using to raise the funds, Norton says he read the story and sait it moved him to tears:

This man has suffered profound loss that would crush the spirit of many people and yet he still passionately wants a chance to contribute positively to the world.  If we don’t welcome people like this into our communities and empower his dream of making an impact with his life, then we’re not the country we tell ourselves we are.

A rep for CrowdRise told me Norton donated $1,000 and that the average donation has been $30.

Here’s the original story about “The Scientist” on HONY:

Rob covers business, economics and the environment for Fusion. He previously worked at Business Insider. He grew up in Chicago.