A Christmas Miracle of sorts..
Christmas 1999
Back Home Store

 For a couple of years we have had a section on our Web Site called "How Can You Help" Response to it has been more or less a trickle here and there. A few weeks before Christmas a fellow from Dayton, OH called and spoke to my wife telling her that for sometime, he's felt the need to do something but wasn't really sure of how or what.

   This fellow is visually impaired, sees but not enough to drive, and has special hardware that is available to the visually impaired that reads everything on the screen, and accepts voice commands like a mouse does.

   Seems this fellow ran into our web site, and when the system read the button How Can You Help, he said, I thought, hmm now what's this, and went to it. He said it spoke to him, and that this was what he immediately felt that nagging feeling was all about.

   So he set about through a network of friends to make a difference to some children for Christmas, his only regret, and it wasn't much of one was he'd love to see their faces, but said he could when he closed his eyes.

He called here and spoke to Denise. He told her of his plan to collect Toys and wanted to know what else could be used. By simply talking to a few folks he already had a pile of items for Handicap piling up in his home.

   I, on the other hand, have become a skeptic, and a cynical one at that. Too many "oh, I want to help but no ones ever there," plain ol' lip service. He said that there was to be a weekend Toy/Clothing drive on the week end of the 11th and 12th and wanted to know where the items should be shipped. He'd thought that they had found a Trucking Company willing to consider donating delivery by their trucks to Rosebud, SD. I still wasn't buying what was being said. I actually told Denise I'll believe it when the Truck has come loaded and in route.. Talk is cheap, nobody knows this more than the Indigenous People of this country, with every treaty worth less than a good roll of toilet paper. That's not cynicism; that is the plain truth.

   Well this one man in this short period of time collected 7 pallets that are right now on their way to Rosebud, SD. That is 2 pallets of New Toys, 1 pallet of New Blankets and bedding, 2 pallets of Handicap walkers and toilet chairs, plus sorted warm clothing containing No Polyester or trash clothing. They sorted every piece of clothing and the focus was if You wouldn't wear it, it isn't going!! With donated money they bought Coffee, canned food, and condiments for the Elderly, because when it is all said and done the Elderly out there don't have enough to eat, don't have a fridge. It really is 3rd world out there, but many don't want to hear about it. However, this man did something, and in no time at all. He's so inspired that he is already talking about making 2000 an event to remember.

   This one is one I'll never forget. He's opened my eyes and given me hope that there is compassion out there. All this was done with never asking for anything, it's not a write off. It's just from the bottom of his heart, and all he had to say is "Man this really makes me feel good."

Me too.
The Toys, clothing, and all the items were delivered December 21 and distributed to 50 families, same day! God Bless and Merry Christmas!!!
.
The man did ask one thing, here it is.     

"If you put anything about this on your site, please mention
CCX/Conway Trucking for getting the stuff there.
Thanks Again!!
Jeff"

We also say THANK YOU Jeff, and THANK YOU CCX/Conway Trucking.
They did it for FREE!! God Bless.