Life has never been easy for people with disabilities. And the struggle becomes even more emphatic for those who are paralyzed.
Truth be told, people in this unfortunate situation rely on other people even for the most basic things in life, like eating and cleaning themselves up. For them to survive, they have to either be taken care of by their families or a caregiver.
This man named Ray Drake can definitely relate to this situation.
He is from Des Moines, Iowa. Unfortunately, he became paralyzed back in 1989.
Thankfully, his two older sisters are there to give him all the assistance that he needs. They love Ray so much that they would do everything just to make his life easier.
Sadly, even they also have their limits, though. There are just some things that they can’t do by themselves.
August 2020 Derecho.
Just recently, the state was devastated by an extreme storm that did nothing but wreak havoc and destruction. Agricultural experts said, roughly 40% of the state’s crops were put to waste as the devastating windstorm wiped it all out.
According to Wikipedia:
“At its peak, the most extreme winds for the storm reached 110–140 mph (177–225 km/h; 49.2–62.6 m/s), equivalent to a Category 2-4 hurricane, in eastern Iowa and western Illinois, causing widespread severe and some catastrophic damage to residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural property, hitting the Cedar Rapids, Iowa area and surrounding counties especially hard.”
Ray’s backyard was no exception to the state-wide destruction brought by Derecho.
Trees in his backyard were torn into pieces and cleaning it up was just too much for the sisters to handle. The place was a complete mess and they just didn’t know what to do.
If you need help, just “call” for help.
They went on calling some of Drake’s high school friends, they asked if any of them had a chainsaw that they could use to trim down the huge chunks of trees all over their brother’s yard.
Doug Applegate saw the photos and told himself, “You need more than just one chainsaw.”
Applegate had an idea.
He contacted Roosevelt High School and thankfully, the school’s football team stepped up to offer help. They were not only ready to help- they were happy to do it.
Just two hours after making the call, 30 players showed up at Drake’s home.
All of them were ready to get going with the cleaning. The teenagers put on their “game face”- not for a football game, but to take the large debris out of Ray’s backyard.
Way to go ‘Rough Riders!’
These teens have the right attitude! They simply know the value that their role can play in the community.
One player named Jackson Neary said:
“That’s just what people in Iowa do. We’re all friendly and help each other out.”
This world, amid the pandemic, will still become a better place for everyone if all of us think the same way as these boys.
Ray can’t thank them enough.
The profound love and genuine care coming from the teenage boys moved him deeply and made him tear up. Ray and his sisters were beyond thankful for what they have done for them.
When asked how he felt about the kind gesture shown to him, Drake responded with, “I’m blessed. I’m blessed.”
We need more people like them, Ray’s sisters, Applegate, and the Roosevelt High School’s Rough Riders. They are doing a great job by being so selfless and being ready to help.
They may not be superheroes, but they all know what to do when someone calls for help.
Watch these teens with big hearts in action in the video below.
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