This was in my email inbox the other day. A request from Ray Lenarcic to help a little boy and his family enhance the the little guy’s days. Who among us could say no?
Please read and let me know if this indeed tugs at your heartstrings. I cried buckets. Literally, buckets.
Isaac’s Room
By R. J. Lenarcic
Webster’s dictionary defines hero as any person either admired for courage, nobility or exploits (especially in war) or for qualities or
achievements regarded as an ideal or model. The word is often misused in describing individuals who frankly do not meet the defined
criteria. A hero’s actions or achievements must be so exceptional as to set him or her apart from the rest of us. Sgt. Shawn P. Martin was a hero. The Delmar Marine was sent to Iraq in the spring of 2007 as part of an EOD (Explosives Ordnance Disposal) unit. On June 20 that year, shortly into his tour, his bomb squad was sent to clear out an area where one of our vehicles had been blown up. After over eight hours of nerve-wracking work, Sgt. Martin and Staff Sgt. Steve Wilson decided to check out one more area. The explosion killed them both.
We learn more about this American hero from his widow, Mimi, spokesperson for the local Fallen Stars Memorial Project. The strapping (6’2-225 lbs.), dark-haired graduate of Bethlehem High played football, lived life to the fullest, rarely stopped smiling, was loyal to a fault to friends and family and loved amusement parks. As so often is the case, big, tough guys often have a gentler side. Shawn loved to cook for Mimi and he absolutely loved children. Mimi recalls walking into a room and finding her niece, Jordan, sitting on Shawn’s lap while he read her a story. When recently asking her nephew, Jared, what he remembered about Uncle Shawn, he answered, “Pulling me up a hill on my wagon and helping me ride down.” Whenever he returned home, he couldn’t wait to wrap those big arms around Jared, Jordan and Kiera, his sister’s daughter. Sgt. Shawn P. Martin was 30 when he died for his country.
Big Shawn would have loved little Isaac and the feeling would have been mutual. The three year old son of Amy (self-employed farmer) and Mark (driver for Brown’s Feed) Skottke from Elizabethtown Rd., Ilion, has congenital myopathy. The disease has trapped the toddler in a body incapable of movement, speech and save for a ventilator operating 24/7, breathing. A feeding tube sustains his life. Because of his condition, Isaac must live on the ground floor of his home and thus his life is spent in the living room. He is tended to by homecare nurses 21 hours a day. The other three hours (7-10 p.m.) are spent alone with Mom, Dad and 4-year old sister Samantha. The Skottke’s are one of the nicest, hard-working, loving families you’ll ever meet.
Isaac’s Room. Amy and Mark have a dream; a room of his own for their son and it’s a dream that can come true. There’s a small 20 ’x 12’ structure off of the kitchen which can be renovated so that Isaac would not only have his own space but could join the family during mealtime. The Skottke’s have exercised all options regarding financing the project. Thanks to volunteers, family and a social service agency, Isaac’s room can become a reality – but for one thing - financing the building materials. That’s where Irv Bunce and the Frankfort Kiwanis come in.
Bunce is the club’s president and has made Isaac’s happiness one of his life’s pursuits. Subsequently, he has converted us to his cause. Irv is also a proponent of the Fallen Stars Memorial Project and as such, last year, organized a benefit golf tournament in honor of Sgt. Shawn Martin. The event generated a few thousand dollars which, along with our other fundraisers, enabled us to support numerous area charities including the Gram Lorraine Children’s Christmas Program, Camp Kiwanis, the Frankfort-Ilion Food Pantry, the Frankfort Library, etc.
Because you can’t say no to the ultimate nice guy, nor in this case would you want to, we accepted Irv’s recommendation that the proceeds from the 2009 Sgt. Martin Memorial Tournament go for Isaac’s room. Hopefully, we’ll earn enough to make building expenses. If not, we’ll find the rest. Mark Skottke has a special wish regarding the room; that it have a skylight so Isaac can see the stars at night. It will. Isaac will not only be able to see diamonds in the sky but Mr. Sun as well. And somewhere in the great beyond, the smiling face of the big hero Marine will be looking down watching over him.
Making A Dream Come True. Interested in golfing or being a sponsor (July 31 – 9:00 a.m. Pine Hills Golf Course) Call Irv at #895-7048 (www.frankfortkiwanis.com) Interested in making a donation: Send a check to the Frankfort Kiwanis Club, c/o Irv Bunce, 202 Kernan Ave., Frankfort, N.Y. 13340
