A Generous Hobby

Bill has been a truck driver for 47 years and has traveled to 48 of the 50 states. The only states he has not traveled are Vermont and Maine. Bill travels with his wife of 42 years. Her name is Bonnie. Bill has driven his trucks nearly 9 million miles, and Bonnie has been at his side for many of those miles. At the various stops along their travels, Bill has a hobby of popping in quarters and playing the “Grabber Game” (the one with the claws) for stuffed animals. Bill has retrieved over 500 stuffed toys over the years. He has become a master of the game and knows exactly what position these animals must be in to gain the prize. At one particular stop, he saw an animal he just had to have, but it wasn’t in the right position to retrieve. For nearly 3 months he would make periodic visits to the site to see its position. Sure enough, one day is was ready to be taken home.

So what do they do with all these stuff animals? Well, they donate them to charity. Madison Memorial Hospital was honored to be the recipient of two large bags of these precious toys. Bonnie was volunteering at the Senior Center when Bill brought them to us, so we had a nice visit with Bill. He told us of a special experience he and his wife had on one occasion. They had just retrieved a prized stuffed unicorn, which Bonnie was holding. A small child, who had some health difficulties, was close by. When she saw the unicorn she got very excited. She started stuttering words that were very difficult for them to understand. Finally they could make out the words “horse…horse” as she pointed at the unicorn. Bill turned to this young girl’s mother and asked if it would be alright to give her the toy. Her mother was overwhelmed with excitement at this request and gave her approval. The young girl latched onto the unicorn with the biggest of smiles as she continued to tightly hug and stutter the words “horse …horse ….horse”. Bill got emotional as he talked of some of the experiences they have had throughout the years. We could sense his deep love for children.

Thanks Bill and Bonnie for your generosity to our young patients. We are sure you have touched many lives through your special “Grabber Game” talent. You have definitely touched ours.

Warmly,

Madison Memorial Hospital
Rexburg, Idaho