Hard working Dad had pickup and equipment stolen

When he called me this morning, My Dad was trying, unsuccessfully, to hold back the tears. His one solid means of getting to work and providing for his family is gone. I scrolled through my phone looking for a picture of my Dad that would best convey to you exactly what kind of man my dad is. I saw this and stopped immediately. The picture you see is what my family sees almost every day. He's asleep on the couch, in the living room, about 5PM. There's a movie on, there's talk and noise.. yet he's sleeping hard. He is too exhausted and too hard of hearing to be bothered by it. He could make the arduous journey upstairs to his bed, but he chooses not to. His family isn't upstairs, and it's his family that he wants, even if his body can't stay awake to enjoy them. He must rise at 2AM to get to work by 3. He knows he will be tired tomorrow, but it's one of the many sacrifices he makes for his family.

 

Since he was a teenager working in the sandpit, Billy Polkinghorn hasn't stopped performing manual labor. He served his country in the Navy working as a mechanic of the U.S.S. Coral Sea. After that, he started a tree service business consisting of himself, some chainsaws and ropes, and whoever he could get to help him. He served the community of Coldspring, Texas honestly and fairly, even if it meant not asking for enough money. He lost a significant portion of his hearing and he was injured many times. Most significantly receiving third degree burns over most of his body and, on a separate occasion, falling 40 feet strapped to a tree that broke under him, which broke his neck and severally injured his left arm. His body forced him to give up tree service full time and he now drives a concrete mixer. But financial needs forced him to continue tree service on the side to provide for his family. My father always put his family's needs above his own. Sure, my dad could have gotten enough sleep, if he didn't spend so much of his off time with his family. Any bit of extra money he made went to his family. He spent thousands of dollars in gas alone to get his family to church and his kids a better education than he got. He stayed up to tell his kids stories, read them books, and sing songs. He slept on the cold hard ground in tents on last minute camping trips not because he wanted to, (it was one of the only things he ever complained about) but because his children asked him to. I'm rambling, I know. I just want you to know how immeasurably hard this man has worked and continues to work, the sacrifices he's made, and the good he has done. He's now sixty years old. His body, his mind, and his heart are tired. His spirit was not ready for what happened. His 15 year old pickup truck was stolen. In it were his chainsaws, ropes, thousands more in equipment,  and his wallet. He just spent over $2000 for necessary repairs. It was insured, but not against theft. Now he has no way to get to work, no way to make money doing tree service on the side, and little hope that things will get better on their own.

 

What he needs is money to purchase another vehicle to get to work. It would be even better if he could get another truck and replace the equipment. He purchased the truck for $9,500 and the equipment was worth a few thousand. In today's market, it will be more than that to replace. For a man who has spent his entire life being stressed and strained over money only to be slammed with this unfair and illegal act, just before Christmas, could you spare just a small amount toward helping him get back on his feet?  Could you also share this fundraiser among friends and family on social media? Thank you very much for your time and any donation that the Lord leads you to give. From my family to yours, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.