Wyokie
Active member
Saw this in today's Daily Oklahoman and had to share.
http://www.newsok.com/article/3012585/ (Have to resigster)
Oklahomans lose everything but gain Oregonians' hearts
Football legend helps head up donations after moving stolen.
Nicole Bennett and Eddy Fagan wanted a fresh start when they decided to leave Altus last month for Oregon. Last week, the couple and their three children got what they wanted — the hard way. They awoke Thursday morning at a hotel outside Portland to discover that their moving van, with all their possessions, had been stolen.
Since then, Oregonians have showered them with donations and love to ease the pain. Local legend Joey Harrington — now a quarterback with the Miami Dolphins — visited the family Sunday. The former Oregon Duck standout opened his wallet and pulled a number of businesses together to assist the family with household appliances and furniture.
"Everything we owned was in that van,” Bennett said Monday from a newly rented apartment in Clackamas, Ore. "At first, we were devastated. Then, the more we thought about it, the madder we got. But our faith in people has been totally restored. It's just been unbelievable how people have responded. This has been the worst and best thing to ever happen to us.”
Job lost in Altus
A new life drove Bennett and Fagan westward.
The couple struggled to find employment after a Denny's restaurant closed in the fall in Altus. Fagan, 39, worked as a cook while Bennett, 29, waited tables. It closed shortly after the two began dating. Fagan found a job at a convenience store. Soon, a former employer in Oregon called and asked him to come back to work. "The timing couldn't have been better,” Fagan said.
"I said, ‘Hon, how would you like to live in Oregon?' I told her it was real pretty and the people were really nice. Then, on our fourth day here, we were robbed.”
Virtually everything they owned was locked inside the moving van, including irreplaceable items such as boxes filled with family photographs.
The loss of one photo was especially tough to swallow. It showed Bennett's 10-year-old daughter, Brittany, being held as a baby by her father. Brittany's father died two years ago.
Bennett has called her mother to find out what replacement photos she might have.
"That's been the toughest part. We keep remembering little things — things that were in the van,” Bennett said.
Overwhelming response
Oregonians have done their best to help them recover.
The outpouring of support began after Bennett went to KGW-TV in Portland with a plea to the thieves.
Police found the van abandoned, but empty, shortly after the story aired.
The Clackamas County sheriff's office then set up 13 donation drops. Within two hours, donated items filled a truck larger than the family's moving van. Envelopes of checks and cash continue to flow in at the sheriff's office.
"The response has been overwhelming,” said Lee Eddy, the department's spokesman. "In fact, the family has received more than it will ever need. They're talking about donating items to local shelters.”
Then there was Harrington's visit, which was more than the family could handle emotionally. The quarterback and his fiancee, Emily, visited the family armed with a laptop, printer, fax machine, $3,000 gift certificate from Nike and several donations of new household appliances and furniture.
"My 12-year-old son Joshua isn't an emotional kid,” Fagan said. "But when Joey Harrington showed up, he had tears in his eyes. It's just been amazing.”
Fagan figured he would make the occasion more memorable by asking Nicole to marry him.
She said yes.
http://www.newsok.com/article/3012585/ (Have to resigster)
Oklahomans lose everything but gain Oregonians' hearts
Football legend helps head up donations after moving stolen.
Nicole Bennett and Eddy Fagan wanted a fresh start when they decided to leave Altus last month for Oregon. Last week, the couple and their three children got what they wanted — the hard way. They awoke Thursday morning at a hotel outside Portland to discover that their moving van, with all their possessions, had been stolen.
Since then, Oregonians have showered them with donations and love to ease the pain. Local legend Joey Harrington — now a quarterback with the Miami Dolphins — visited the family Sunday. The former Oregon Duck standout opened his wallet and pulled a number of businesses together to assist the family with household appliances and furniture.
"Everything we owned was in that van,” Bennett said Monday from a newly rented apartment in Clackamas, Ore. "At first, we were devastated. Then, the more we thought about it, the madder we got. But our faith in people has been totally restored. It's just been unbelievable how people have responded. This has been the worst and best thing to ever happen to us.”
Job lost in Altus
A new life drove Bennett and Fagan westward.
The couple struggled to find employment after a Denny's restaurant closed in the fall in Altus. Fagan, 39, worked as a cook while Bennett, 29, waited tables. It closed shortly after the two began dating. Fagan found a job at a convenience store. Soon, a former employer in Oregon called and asked him to come back to work. "The timing couldn't have been better,” Fagan said.
"I said, ‘Hon, how would you like to live in Oregon?' I told her it was real pretty and the people were really nice. Then, on our fourth day here, we were robbed.”
Virtually everything they owned was locked inside the moving van, including irreplaceable items such as boxes filled with family photographs.
The loss of one photo was especially tough to swallow. It showed Bennett's 10-year-old daughter, Brittany, being held as a baby by her father. Brittany's father died two years ago.
Bennett has called her mother to find out what replacement photos she might have.
"That's been the toughest part. We keep remembering little things — things that were in the van,” Bennett said.
Overwhelming response
Oregonians have done their best to help them recover.
The outpouring of support began after Bennett went to KGW-TV in Portland with a plea to the thieves.
Police found the van abandoned, but empty, shortly after the story aired.
The Clackamas County sheriff's office then set up 13 donation drops. Within two hours, donated items filled a truck larger than the family's moving van. Envelopes of checks and cash continue to flow in at the sheriff's office.
"The response has been overwhelming,” said Lee Eddy, the department's spokesman. "In fact, the family has received more than it will ever need. They're talking about donating items to local shelters.”
Then there was Harrington's visit, which was more than the family could handle emotionally. The quarterback and his fiancee, Emily, visited the family armed with a laptop, printer, fax machine, $3,000 gift certificate from Nike and several donations of new household appliances and furniture.
"My 12-year-old son Joshua isn't an emotional kid,” Fagan said. "But when Joey Harrington showed up, he had tears in his eyes. It's just been amazing.”
Fagan figured he would make the occasion more memorable by asking Nicole to marry him.
She said yes.
