The community has come together to raise more than $18,000 to help repair the home of a Poplar Bluff, Mo., World War II veteran.
A fundraiser was held Friday for Wilbur and Anna Schmit at Northside Nutrition, located in Twin Towers.
A large tree fell on their home in May and destroyed the bedroom Anna had left only moments before. The couple has been unable to make repairs to the house.
"It just seems unbelievable. But it's true. They're all here," Wilbur Schmit, 92, said when he arrived at the nutrition center for the two-hour fundraiser.
When asked if he had expected this kind of help, Schmit said, "Never, not in my wildest dreams."
More than $4,400 of the total donations came from catfish meals prepared and served by nutrition center staff, who first helped bring the Schmits' problems to light.
In addition to serving those attending the fundraiser, the staff also delivered more than 300 meals across Poplar Bluff to people who wanted to help.
Other donations have been collected since July 9, when the Schmits story first appeared in the Daily American Republic. An account has been established at First Midwest Bank for donations, as well as a GoFundMe account.
A goal of $20,000 has been set to purchase materials, said volunteer Jeff Shawan, who has helped organize the effort.
Shawan met last week with contractor Chris McArthur of Property Pro. The Poplar Bluff company has volunteered their time and labor to make the repairs. They are in the process of putting a materials list together, Shawan said.
Crossroads Ministry has also volunteered to put a roof on the finished room.
Any money beyond the cost of repairs will be used to make other needed improvements to the house and help the Schmits with other necessities, Shawan said.
Schmit is the sole caregiver for his wife, Anna, who began experiencing health problems about a year and a half ago.
Many of the people attending the fundraiser stopped to thank Schmit for his military service, including members of Air Evac and Butler County commissioners.
Schmit served on the USS Washington after enlisting in the Navy at age 17. He spent 22 months at sea, without ever stepping foot on land, while they fought Japanese forces.
Schmit describes the time as just "doing your share."
He married Anna in 1949, three years after leaving the service.
The couple receives homebound meal delivery from Northside Nutrition, but little other assistance beyond Social Security.
They seemed overwhelmed by the damage to their home when nutrition center staff saw it in early June, said Tammy Kassinger, nutrition center director.
"You could just see the defeat in his demeanor," she said.
When staff members realized the Schmits were continuing to live in the damaged house, they began making phone calls on the Schmits' behalf.
Many agencies have since come to their aid.
This includes Modern Woodmen Chapter 6240 of Poplar Bluff, which matched the first $1,200 of Friday's donations.
"This is a good cause and we love good causes," said Phil Newkirk, of Modern Woodmen. "The minute you read it in the paper and the minute you looked at their house and see who they are... With something like this, it's just natural."
The fraternal group provides each chapter with money to spend within their community each year, Newkirk said.
Staff at John J. Pershing VA Medical Center also have been working with the Schmits to get them registered for additional benefits, said public information officer Angela Smith. The Schmits may qualify for additional pension benefits, and other services, including hearing aids for Mr. Schmit, who has already seen an audiologist.