By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
A ninety year old man left a note on an unmarked patrol car he accidentally struck while parking next to it had a big surprise after he received a telephone call from a police sergeant who called to settle the damages: a crowd sourced funding campaign to pay for it.
On February ninth, a twenty-four year veteran of the Burien Washington Police Department returned from a meeting to the parking lot where he discovered his unmarked car had been struck, causing over two thousand three hundred dollars damage. A business card was left from the driver causing the collision who wished to make contact to settle the damage.
The officer called the driver and they agreed to meet the next day. The driver was a ninety year old World War Two Veteran that had been driving since he was ten years old in a rural county.
The veteran was extremely apologetic over the collision and stated this was his first accident in his eighty years of driving. They spoke of his interesting life and career in the military.
Out of respect for the driver’s service, the officer wished to find a way to give tribute to the elderly veteran and after posting the incident on his Facebook page several friends suggested he create a GoFundMe page to raise funds for the collision.
The officer then created the funding project and wrote:
Anything you would like to contribute will go directly towards the repair bill. He had an old car and has no desire to fix the minor damage to it. The repair estimate is $2,332.50 and any money collected above this amount will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Foundation. Any amount would be appreciated and demonstrates our respect and appreciation for the sacrifice of this brave Veteran. Thank you!
Presently (10:51 AM Eastern) the fundraiser has brought in fifteen hundred dollars to offset the cost of the patrol car’s damage for the veteran who decided he would not repair his own vehicle due to its age.
Any surplus funds will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Foundation.
Contributions to the GoFundMe project may be made at:
http://www.gofundme.com/thankaveteran
[Update] As of 1:00 PM Eastern, donations have reached the funding goal. Congratulations to all who provided donations to a certainly thankful vet.
By Darren Smith
Sources:
GoFundMe
Burien Police Twitter Page
The views expressed in this posting are the author’s alone and not those of the blog, the host, or other weekend bloggers. As an open forum, weekend bloggers post independently without pre-approval or review. Content and any displays or art are solely their decision and responsibility.
Detroit, Older drivers can be a hazard. But, his age only makes him a potential hazard. I investigated accidents for decades. The biggest risk are drivers 16-18. It’s not even close.
Thanks, Chuck. My old man and 5 uncles served in WW2. Only one is left. He’s my mom’s twin brother. He fought in the Pacific, island to island. My father-in-law was a young B-17 pilot who flew missions over Germany. None of these guys talked much about the war. I know you have family, friends who were citizen soldiers. We are solid on this one. Very solid.
Richard … in Michigan any accident will be reported by law enforcement, regardless of fault, it will appear on your driving record in the state. Anyone who self reports a minor scraping is either a fool or someone with more money than brains…your rates will go up. The $2200 I pay is for a more or less customized 2003 van…sound reasonable? For someone with zero violations or accidents in 25+ years? Of course not, the premium is for all the other drivers who smash in to each other and get reported by LE.
PS: My better half’s 2013 Cadillac Crossover costs about $2650 per year. Is their any connection to vehicle value and costs. She does have one ticket about 5 years ago…so I presume that’s why hers is higher. It sure isn’t for any claim either of is ever going to make short of a total tee-boning by some meathead in a giant Ram truck blowing a red.
Paul C… “uninsured motorist coverage” is also part of our premium package here in Michigan.
Chuck Stanley …what you said. My good citizenship, as far as it goes, is not derived from anything militaristic, even though I am a veteran of an ugly war. I value all veterans of any period….which doesn’t make me militaristic, just acknowledgement that some very good men and women paid a far higher price that me. My behavior is more along the lines of wanting to set a good example for others whom I hope take the hint. War is the anathema of that mind set.
Bill McW… …please point out anywhere I have “railed against” welfare per se. Or maybe you did not mean me?
The big elephant in the room is that of a 90 year old man still driving. Sure, many elderly drivers are great, safe drivers. But many are not. But in a country where sprawl and lack of public transportation are God-given rights, it’s virtually impossible to live without a car. With more of us living longer than ever, and driving long past the time we should, Go Fund Me sites will be extremely busy.
What Nick said. I don’t agree with him all that often, but he is spot-on here. I don’t know who pissed in Bruce’s corn flakes, but he seems to never miss a chance to piss in somebody else’s.
Mr. McWilliams, why is it necessary for conservatives to rail against something already condemned by liberals? Do you need affirmation from conservatives to stroke your ego?
Nice story. There are few WW2 vets left in this world. They, of course, helped save the world. That’s all, just helped save the world from evil.
Bruce Wyoch routinely messes up kids birthday parties by telling the kids they are victims of a militaristic culture. He also lectures the children on the bad food they’re eating and then gives a sinister laugh as he opens his raincoat.
Most 90 year old men are veterans of WWII and not perhaps more as in Korea or Viet Nam which might have justified his identity as a life time soldier and career veteran. .
It seems a product of our times that this nice story is embedded with a current militaristic message making good citizenship a byproduct of military patriotism.
Air Dog
Insurance is indeed a scam aka Ponzi scheme. Corporate welfare – funny how self-described conservatives never mention THAT when they rail against welfare.
Bill McWilliams – not sure how insurance works in your state but in Arizona the Dept of Insurance will give the name of every insurance company authorized to do business in the state and their rate structure. Not sure how that is corporate welfare. Seems like competitive business to me.
Generally car insurance contracts impose a duty to report an accident, whether you are submitting a claim not.
I spend roughly $2200 / year for vehicle insurance on one vehicle (because the law requires I carry the insurance)…and I have never tried to use it for anything, even in a no fault state. I have no tickets or claims made in over 25 years. My rate would likely increase by 30% or more if I did. Insurance here is for major catastrophic incidents, nothing less. Period. Then you still get skewered. It is a scam and there is nothing anyone can do about it. The biggest scam is the latest gimmick of wanting to put a gadget in your vehicle to monitor your driving habits….I’ve told them to shove it where the sun doesn’t shine. Why do they need a gadget to judge a driver with no violations and no claims in 25+ years? They don’t.
So good for the officer who set up the crowd funding alternative. With no fault, at least where I live, we drivers with no violations or claims are paying for the others who drive like idiots …. “no fault”….get it?
Aridog – in Arizona where we have illegal alien driving without licenses and insurance we are required to carry ‘uninsured motorist insurance.’
Of course, it is possible this guy has been using this excuse for every accident he has had. 😉
This is very nice and he does not have to report it to his insurance company. However, at his age, he should finally make a claim and get his back from the insurance company.
On a second note, his older car (probably built of steel) had little damage while the plastic car driven by the undercover cop sustained all the damage.
What a nice story. 🙂
I’m curious, as Washington’s mandatory insurance limits would more than cover the damage.