My name is Stephanie, and I am posting to help raise funds for my fiercely independent grandfather, Phil, a Navy veteran who is turning 80 years old this month.

Phil served our country during the Vietnam War as a helmsman in the U.S. Navy aboard the USS Hornet (CVS-12).

After his years of military service, he spent 30 years as a long-haul semi-truck driver, traveling coast to coast with a spotless record, completely ticket and accident free. Driving has always been a point of pride for him, and more than that, a passion.

That dedication never faded. More recently, he has served the Toledo area more locally, making deliveries of shredded cheese and sacks of flour to many mom and pop pizza shops in the Midwest -- he drives about 40,000 miles a year to provide these necessary ingredients to local businesses and keeping them running!

In order to complete these deliveries, he uses his personal vehicle, a 10 year old Buick with nearly 200,000 miles on it. Unfortunately, during a recent storm where the ice froze over the roads, his car slid and sustained nearly $5,000 in repairs. It is currently sitting in the repair shop because he has no funds to retrieve it. In addition, the transmission is starting to fail after 200,000 miles, and that will be another $6,000 in repairs. He still owes $6,000 on the vehicle loan, leaving him stuck in this current situation with no transportation and no way to earn income.

This Buick is his only source of livelihood and allows him as a veteran to stay in his home and continue paying his bills and keep a roof over his head. He is radically self-sufficient, strong-willed, in decent health, and has been a law abiding, tax paying citizen who has been able to work tirelessly and take care of himself for the last 65 years, adapting as costs rose, and doing everything he could to stay independent.

If you are able to help in any way, we would be deeply grateful. Every contribution, no matter the size, helps get him closer to affording groceries, retrieving his car, and returning to work. The sooner he’s back on the road, the sooner he can continue supporting himself.

He spent his life serving others. His country, his community, and local small businesses all come first to him. I hope we can now come together and let him know that it's our time to serve him!