I have a really GOOD and heartwarming story about a local Veteran, and it just happened TODAY, August 4, 2024.

It’s one of those “there’s still good in the world….”you never know where things are going to lead”…”patriotic” stories.

First though, here’s a little of the backstory.

Giving Is Good, Inc., a non-profit charity in Green Bay, has been working on implementing a new program called “Giving In Grief”. It is a program where we direct the grief of a family that has lost someone dear, into doing good for others, in memory of their loved one. Earlier this year, a family contacted me about their daughter, Jenny Demmith. She was a vivacious, giving, generous, kind, 18-year old that passed away unexpectedly. When they performed the autopsy, they discovered that she was 7 months pregnant. Her family lost their daughter and their granddaugther.

Jenny’s family and Giving Is Good are partnering to have a fundraiser in Jenny’s honor on August 11th in Green Bay. There will be over 100 raffle baskets that have been donated, including gift certificates, tickets to events, giveaways and door prizes. The money raised will be donated to Giving Is Good, so we can fulfill our mission to get good things into the hands of the people that need them. We are also collecting household items at the door for Veterans transitioning from homelessness (or not-ideal living conditions) into a future tiny home. They are being built in Green Bay soon.

So, last month, flyers and posters were made about this event and marketed and mailed out. Andrew and Kathy Schmidt, wonderful supporters of Giving Is Good, contacted me and said they had a very nice mobility scooter to donate and wondered if I could use it at the raffle event. Yes! I was certain an item like that would bring in some great money, either by being raffled off or in a silent auction. It belonged previously to Kathy’s father, a World War II Veteran, who used it only a few times before he unfortunately passed away. It was available for someone else now, and they wanted to see it go to a Veteran, if possible.

I pondered this mobility scooter for numerous days. I talked it over with the family having the fundraiser. I discussed it with Andrew and Kathy. We happily decided, rather than allowing it to be “won” by just anyone, we wanted it to go to a Veteran that really needed it. That couldn’t be controlled at a raffle event. So, I made numerous calls to various groups. When I talked with the Disabled Veterans of Green Bay this week, to my excitement, I discovered they had a waiting list. They had many Veterans waiting for one to be donated! Eric, a disabled Vietnam War Era Marine, living in Green Bay, was first on the waiting list. I talked with Andrew and Kathy and they loved the idea of donating it to him.

So here we are to today, and that’s what we did today! We loaded it up and drove it to Eric, surrounded by his family. Kathy was able to witness her father’s scooter go to another hero of our country. Giving Is Good, Inc. was able to facilitate it all.

Here are the pictures. Eric was very, very happy, and so funny!

Eric, please enjoy. We hope it takes you to wonderful, new places.

So in conclusion, how this came about was truly awesome. Because of the new program at Giving Is Good…and then finding the Demmith family that wanted to honor the memory of their generous daughter….creating the upcoming event and sharing with others, and because of the generosity of Andrew and Kathy, wanting to honor their Veteran father…now a local Green Bay veteran has better mobility today, tonight, and for his future.

We are in awe at how this all came together and also so very thankful for those with a giving heart to help others.