[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_5toiVBIq8]
When 15-year-old Justin Rozier was thinking about getting a car, he told his mother he would love to have any car that his dad once owned. Justin doesn’t remember his father, Army 1st Lt. Jonathan Rozier, who died in Iraq in 2003 when Justin was just nine months old.
“I don’t know, just knowing that he had it — it’s a whole lot different than just any other thing,” Justin said.
Justin’s mother, Jessica, turned to Facebook and posted the VIN number of Jonathan’s 1999 Toyota Celica, which she was forced to sell shortly after his death, with a note asking for help. She knew it would be a long-shot, but she also knew that she had to at least try.
Help came from Pleasant Grove, Utah, where local residents not only found the model, but the actual car Jonathan Rozier had once owned.
Kyle Fox, who runs a nonprofit called Follow The Flag, raised enough money to purchase the car and assembled a team of volunteer mechanics to fix it like new – all without Justin’s knowledge – and drove the car from Utah to Texas to surprise him for his 15th birthday.
Justin tried to explain what this moment meant to him, but words could not do it justice.
“It’s a link to the past for him. It’s a big thing for me too. I never got to see him come home. So that just one moment right there was — I think I needed that,” Jessica said.
This amazing story of selflessness played a major part in the creation of The Make a Difference Project. Kyle Fox and Follow the Flag exemplify everyday heroes that bring people together to make a difference in the lives of others. Amazing work by all involved!
Story via: CBS Evening News