"just pay it forward"

Gerhardt

Gerhardt

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Gerhardt
A few months ago my daughter announced that after 2 years of college she was done. I hadn't had a chance to raise my voice before she added that she was going to attend a 2-year school for heating and air conditioning. "uhhhh...okay."

So a few weeks ago I moved her to an apt. in Jeff City. Two weeks later the tornado hit, decimating her car and apartment. The next morning my front door flies open and a petite 20 year old blonde yells, "I'MMMMM BAAACKKKKK!"

It took quite a while to find her the first apartment because of her pets. Now it's impossible with an additional 500 people needing a place. She was at work the other day when her cell rang. Another landlord telling her that he'd already rented an apartment. Like her mother, she's very emotional and starts bawling. Then she hears the buzzer where a customer has come in, so she wipes her eyes and goes out front. It's a guy who comes in the store every day. He and his brother have a car lot down the street. He sees her, asks what's wrong, and she tells him.

"You know I come in every day. Today I didn't need anything but I was driving along and God told me to pull in anyway. Now I know why. When your shift is over stop by and see my brother and me." So when her shift is over she does and they walk her outside. "Pick out a car. A nice one."

All they asked in return is that she pay it forward. She's a 20 year old student, so her ability is limited. Her dad though...I'm on a quest to continue these guys' mission. Mostly in small ways, but I'm pondering a few things more meaningful.
 
Cool story bro.....really. That's a cool story.

What kind of "store" do you have and by "Jeff City" I assume you're in Missouri?
 
Gerhardt said:
A few months ago my daughter announced that after 2 years of college she was done. I hadn't had a chance to raise my voice before she added that she was going to attend a 2-year school for heating and air conditioning. "uhhhh...okay.".
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Ain't nothing wrong with an HVAC career. That has to be one of the recession proof fields. People will ALWAYS want to be comfortable in their home.

It would take Armageddon or something like it, plunging this planet back into the Stone age, for people to give up cool, dry air pumped into their homes.

That's cool, what those guys did, too.
 
Timbeck2 said:
Cool story bro.....really. That's a cool story.

What kind of "store" do you have and by "Jeff City" I assume you're in Missouri?
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Yes, I live in Columbia. I don't have a store...my daughter got a part-time job at Eagle Stop in Jeff City.
 
BTW, what did she pick? Was it a sensible car that gets good gas mileage and fits her mission?
 
A good story ,we haven’t self destructed yet.
 
Fiveslide said:
BTW, what did she pick? Was it a sensible car that gets good gas mileage and fits her mission?
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There's actually a whole lot more to the story but I wanted to keep it short. She told me that she went to a 10 year old Kia Optima with 150K miles, the cheapest car she could find. They urged her to get something nicer but she wouldn't do it. Runs great and still shines. And right now she's the happiest girl you can imagine. Her mission is the same as my mission is for her. A reliable car to get her to class every day.

I wasn't involved in any of this and didn't know until after-the-fact. The cool part is that they couldn't get her to pick out a nicer, newer car, and said if that's the one she was going to take then they'd also pay the tax on it for her. I'll see if I can get a picture to upload in a minute.
 
I don't have much experience with the older Kias, but I'm definitely a fan of their newer stuff. My stepmother has a newer SUV with air conditioned seats, those are sweet.
 
Gerhardt said:
There's actually a whole lot more to the story but I wanted to keep it short. She told me that she went to a 10 year old Kia Optima with 150K miles, the cheapest car she could find. They urged her to get something nicer but she wouldn't do it. Runs great and still shines. And right now she's the happiest girl you can imagine. Her mission is the same as my mission is for her. A reliable car to get her to class every day.

I wasn't involved in any of this and didn't know until after-the-fact. The cool part is that they couldn't get her to pick out a nicer, newer car, and said if that's the one she was going to take then they'd also pay the tax on it for her. I'll see if I can get a picture to upload in a minute.
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Not even close to being a parent, (and never will be,) but I'd say you and her mother raised her right.

The only problem with HVAC is you're cold until you get the furnace fixed, and then you go to another cold house. And you're hot until you get the AC fixed, and then you go to another hot house. But, you can't export that job!
 
Fiveslide said:
I don't have much experience with the older Kias, but I'm definitely a fan of their newer stuff. My stepmother has a newer SUV with air conditioned seats, those are sweet.
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KIA makes very decent cars. I've owned a bunch of them. They're easier to work on than most, too. And they don't rip you off so much on the parts if you choose to buy OEM. Especially seeing as how she's mechanically inclined, she should be fine with it.

Speaking of which, KIA engines should get OEM oil filters. There's something about the anti-drainback valves that most aftermarket filters don't get quite right. (The OEM filters are of excellent quality, however, and are quite inexpensive.)

Rich
 
RJM62 said:
Speaking of which, KIA engines should get OEM oil filters. There's something about the anti-drainback valves that most aftermarket filters don't get quite right. (The OEM filters are of excellent quality, however, and are quite inexpensive.)
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I always run OEM oil filters on my vehicle, they're usually not much more expensive than a cheapie from Wallyworld, and I know the filter media and anti-drainback valving is correct. I've found OEM cabin and engine filters to not be that bad as well price wise.
 
Bill Jennings said:
I always run OEM oil filters on my vehicle, they're usually not much more expensive than a cheapie from Wallyworld, and I know the filter media and anti-drainback valving is correct. I've found OEM cabin and engine filters to not be that bad as well price wise.
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I replace all three twice a year, always using OEM. (The dusty roads around here clog up the engine air filters and cabin air filters pretty quickly.) The nearest dealership is 50 miles away, but they'll mail them to me for cost plus postage if I have no other reason to make the trip. Usually I have some other reason to go out that way, however, and just add a stop to the itinerary.

The OEM oil filters for my KIA are about $6.00 each at the dealership and they're great filters. I'm kind of a tribology geek and I do things like cut filters open to check them out. The KIA filters are top-notch.

Rich
 
Have her move to AZ after she is done. In the summer we will keep her crazy busy we more work then she can handle. I know you wouldn't want here to move far away. I have kids too.
 
Exact same thing happened here after our fire, guy bought a new pickup for someone he did not know.
 
A Kia is a good car but she should have got something she could sleep in. Great story and we should all strive to pay it forward.
 
Great story. Good to know there are people who give from the heart. As Tom D said, we all should strive to be those kind of people.
 
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