Army SPC Todd Gissell's Ragtop Bug

Todd Gissell is 26 years old, Active Military and is stationed at Ft. Stewart in Savannah.  He has already been deployed twice and was awaiting his next deployment to South Korea this summer.




Todd had visited Atlanta this past weekend which is his hometown, so that he could attend a VW Gathering with his mom on Mother's Day weekend.   They had a great time.

Unfortunately, the day after the event, on Sunday evening May 14th, Todd was hit by a driver who ran a red light and he was critically injured in his 1963 Ragtop VW Beetle.   He had severe internal injuries, including having punctured his carotid artery in two places, among other critical wounds.  He will undergo multiple surgeries in the days and weeks ahead, and is currently hospitalized.  As Todd is in the Army, his medical needs financially are cared for, however there is one serious need that remains...


It had always been Todd's dream, ever since he saw the first Herbie the Love Bug movie, to drive a 1963 Ragtop Beetle like Herbie.  He finally fulfilled that dream this past December when he purchased his car, and he loved driving it.  When he first awoke, after communicating with hand gestures that he loved his family--  the second gesture was of him driving--  he wanted to know about his car.   Other than his medical needs, this is the one thing that we're certain that Todd will be crushed over. 

So very many people have reached out and expressed desire to help Todd, and many in his VW Clubs have asked how they could help.  After careful consideration of the options, the family and his friends have decided to start this GoFundMe to help Todd get another 1963 VW Ragtop Beetle to replace the one that was destroyed.  This is his dream, and we know he'll want to drive one again. 

His old car, as you can see in the photographs, is quite unrepairable.  This new car, we're hopeful, will be waiting for Todd so he can see it on his departure from the hospital, which is likely a minumum of a month away. 

If you would consider donating to Todd to help him replace his car, we would very much appreciate it.  We know that emotionally this is the just the thing he'll need to keep him going throughout the process of medical treatment during the next few months.  It would mean the world to him. 

We'll still need the VW Community to help us even with the new car.  We have someone who has already stepped up to re-seal and put new bearings in the motor in Todd's old car-- which is salvageable, and we'll need others to help us work on even the replacement car to get it ready for him.