Once again Oxford has proven itself to be a generous and compassionate community.
A coalition of service groups and private citizens came together over the last two weeks to donate the remaining $4,200 (plus a little extra) needed to buy a wheelchair lift for 8-year-old Hunter Strunk, of Addison.
‘I don’t know how I’m going to thank everybody,? said Hunter’s mom Pam Strunk. ‘Bless everyone. Bless you all for all the wonderful things you do for people.?
One special Oxford family, who wishes to remain anonymous, decided to give up buying each other Christmas gifts this year so they could donate $1,000.
‘It makes me feel good to know there are kind-hearted people out there willing to help,? Pam said. ‘You’ve all touched my heart in more ways than I could imagine.?
Hunter was born with a rare brain disorder that left him confined to a wheelchair, unable to talk or feed himself and prone to seizures.
Caring for him is a 24-7 job for mom Pam Strunk, who’s only able to work part-time a result. She’s employed at Daniel Axford Elementary as a para-professional for special needs children.
To help make transporting Hunter easier, Pam has been trying to raise $16,200 to buy an electronic wheelchair lift for a custom van she’s purchasing at a special price from Bill Fox Chevrolet in Rochester.
When the Leader first reported about Pam and Hunter’s situation in the July 20 edition, she had raised $11,000, which included a $1,000 donation from American Legion Post 108 and AMVETS Post 108.
Still needing $5,200 for a lift, the Oxford Public Library Friends (OPLF) donated $1,000 to the Strunks.
In the July 27 Leader, OPLF President C.J. Carnacchio challenged Oxford’s service groups to unite and contribute the remaining $4,200 ? and rise to the challenge they did, donating a combined $3,050
Last week, the Great Oaks Civitan Club and Oxford/Orion Kiwanis Club each voted to donate $1,000. The Rotary Club of Oxford agreed to contribute $500 while the Oxford Lions Club voted to give $550.
‘Oxford’s organizations came through,? Pam said. ‘I’m totally overwhelmed.?
After reading the stories in the Leader, some caring private citizens also decided to donate.
One Oxford family of five talked it over and decided to forgo buying Christmas presents this year in order to donate $1,000 to Pam and Hunter.
‘People should step in and help out just because,? said the family’s mother. ‘It doesn’t have to be a friend or a relative. If someone else needs help, you should help them.?
The mother, who wishes to remain anonymous, was especially proud of her three children who each decided on their own to give up Christmas gifts in order to help the Strunks.
‘My kids have huge hearts,? she said. ‘That’s always been our goal to raise kids that are caring and considerate and responsible.?
Rounding out the list of donors were Brandon residents Elizabeth Green and Ann Operthauser, North Branch resident Don and Bulah Tyler ($25), and Alice Kiplinger, of Tampa, Florida.
Green decided to donate $100 because she has a special needs child in the Oxford school district and knew Strunk from her work at Daniel Axford.
Operthauser and Kiplinger both learned about the Strunks? situation from the newspaper and decided to donate $50 and $100 respectively.
On Monday, Sue Hamidi, a manager at the Oxford Big Boy, called the Leader to get Pam’s address because the local restaurant had collected $203 in donations from customers and employees over the last three weeks.
Apparently, the restaurant’s night manager, Amanda Bause, read the original July 20 Leader article and decided to put a collection can on the front counter.
Pam said she likes to take Hunter to the local Big Boy at least once a week. She enjoys a hot fudge sundae, while he enjoys all the people and activity.
In addition to all the groups and people who made contributions, Pam also wished to thank her parents Don and Mary Lucarelli, of Oxford, who encouraged her to contact the Leader.
‘If it wasn’t for my parents, I never would have called,? she said. ‘I’m not one to ask for help. My nickname’s always been ‘Dofor? because I do for myself. I like to give more than I like to receive.?
‘My parents told me, ‘People would help if they knew about you.? And they were right.?

It was a physically, mentally and emotionally draining trip that pushed a small band of volunteers to their limits, but in the end, ‘H2O ? Help to Oxford? was a complete success.
‘It was the most exhausting thing I’ve ever done ? ever ? but the most rewarding too,? said Oxford Township Parks and Recreation Director Ron Davis.
A group of 14 volunteers left Oxford, Michigan Friday night as part of convoy of six trucks and two trailers hauling an estimated 52,000 or more bottles of water plus other donated supplies more than 830 miles south to Oxford, Mississippi.
The water and supplies will aid Hurricane Katrina evacuees and survivors from the Gulf Coast areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
Located in Lafayette County, Oxford is a 10-square-mile city of about 12,000 people in northern Mississippi.
Home to the University of Mississippi (or Ole Miss), the city and surrounding area are currently housing an estimated 2,000 to 4,000 Hurricane Katrina evacuees who are staying with family and friends or in local hotels and motels.
The city, county and university are working together to coordinate local disaster relief efforts. An empty Wal-Mart building owned by the university has served as a ‘resource center? since Sept. 6, providing a variety of assistance to Hurricane Katrina evacuees (see story on page 5).
‘Y’all just don’t know how many people (Oxford, Michigan’s donation) is going to effect,? said Jimmy Allgood, director of Oxford-Lafayette County Emergency Management, to the convoy members shortly after their arrival Saturday. ‘I’ve been to the coast since the hurricane. Those people are going to need everything you brought.?
From Sept. 6 to 8, Oxford Township Parks and Recreation spearheaded a water drive dubbed ‘H2O? Help to Oxford,? which collected more than 17,000 bottles of drinking water donated by local residents and businesses.
The H2O drive also resulted in cash donations totalling more than $10,000, which allowed the parks and recreation department to purchase another 34,560 bottles of water for $7,257.
Parks and rec. used $5,529 in donations to make the purchase along with a separate $1,728 donation from Grove’s True Value Hardware.
Riding along with the water were pallets full of hygiene products, socks and underwear, canned goods and other nonperishable food items, can openers, mosquito repellent, stuffed animals for kids, brand new towels, sheets and robes, clothing ? all donated by local residents or purchased with cash donations.
Oxford Village Police Sgt. Mike Solwold escorted the H2O convoy out of Oxford and through Lapeer County after it left the municipal parking lot at 7:01 p.m. Friday, Sept. 9.
Together, Larry and Becky Paquin, Chris and Loretta Acheson, Phil and Jeff Castonia, C.J. Carnacchio, Connie Miller, Don Brantley, Todd Bell, Ron Bass, Jeff Kinsaz, Jeremy Huston and Ron Davis spent the next 19 hours crossing Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and finally Mississippi ? more than 830 grueling miles.
Battling severe fatigue, heavy fog, road construction, road debris, pallets collapsing from the weight of the water, an endless procession of semi-trucks, narrow lanes, communication troubles and a few wrong turns, the volunteers persevered and arrived in Oxford, Mississippi shortly after 2 p.m. Saturday.
‘If you weren’t in those trucks for 35 hours, you have no idea what we went through,? Davis said.
Once in Oxford, Mississippi, the convoy was directed to the Oxford Wire & Cable Services facility (www.owcs.com), which company president Yoshi Murakawa generously donated to house the water and supplies.
There the volunteers were treated to a home-cooked buffet of Southern cuisine, along with many thanks, hugs and gifts from their Mississippi hosts.
‘I’d like to thank you for traveling so far to bring the hurricane victims water,? said Oxford City Mayor Pro-tem and Oxford High School Assistant Principal Ulysses Howell, who presented the convoy with a ‘key to the city? for the people of Oxford, Michigan. ‘I’m sure that water will be put to good use.?
‘We feel kind of like sister cities now,? said Max Hipp, executive director of both the Oxford-Lafayette County Economic Development Foundation and Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce. ‘I think it’s a wonderful thing that you guys would think about us down here and be so concerned to do something like this.?
‘We deeply appreciate what y’all are doing for these folks,? said Buster Clark, Telecommunications Director for Ole Miss and coordinator of the university’s disaster relief efforts. ‘Y’all Yankees sure are helpin? us Southern folk out and I appreciate it. Thank y’all very much.?
‘This is a reflection of our community,? Davis told the crowd. ‘I know if the roles were reversed, you guys would be there for us. I think that’s why our country is so great.?
Last we heard, most of the H2O water will be transported to southern part of Mississippi to help Hurricane Katrina survivors down there, while the other donated supplies will be used to make ‘starter kits? for relocated evacuees consisting of household linens, kitchen and bathroom supplies, etc.
After showering and resting for a while at a Lafayette County fire station, the convoy hit the road again at 9 p.m. Saturday and arrived back in Oxford, Michigan around 1 p.m. Sunday.

Rundown and poor.
Those were the impressions of Brandon High School student, Josh Dolecki, 15, when he first arrived in an impoverished section of Pittsburgh last summer.
‘I expected lots of hard work, but it was fun work,? said Dolecki, one of 16 local youths who traveled to the Pennsylvania city as part of a mission trip.
‘I loved that I was able to help people who were down on their luck. I will definitely do it all again.?
Starting on June 25, high school students voluntarily gave up a week of their time to travel to Pittsburgh. The local high school youths from St. Anne Church in Ortonville and St. Daniel Church in Clarkston, along with four chaperones, joined nearly 400 youths and adults from around the country to help out the organization Catholic HEART Work camp (CHWC). The program assists youth groups around the country to come together to bond, help the less fortunate, and make lasting memories.
Kim Zernec, St. Anne’s youth minister, who assisted in the trip, was very proud to help out and work with the youth.
‘It was wonderful to see the ‘hope? restored in them (local people) along with homes being restored,? said Zernec. ‘It was great to see the youth give unconditionally of themselves.?
Participants worked on 90 different projects over a period of four days, including renovations to a local church. Homes were painted, porches were repaired and often rebuilt, yards that had been overgrown for years were uncovered, and mud was dug out of the basement of an old church flooded a decade ago.
Local youth group leader, Caresse Bitti, 15, knew she was in the city as soon as she arrived in Pittsburgh.
‘There was smoke in the sky from the factories and it was very dirty,? said Bitti.
‘The home I worked in smelled old and was so dirty, when we washed the walls we were surprised at the colors that hid beneath the dirt.?
Both Bitti and Dolecki agreed that their first mission trip was a life changing, amazing event they cannot wait to experience again.
This mission trip was made possible thanks to supporters including: John Cocciolone, Easter Seals, James Lumber, and other parishioners who donated transportation, supplies, and money to help complete projects while in Pennsylvania.