To be disrespectful to someone who staked their life for their country is no small offense.

It might not land you behind bars necessarily, but it’ll definitely put lots of angry eyes on you.

With those sorts of consequences, you’d think people would know better.

Unfortunately, that would be pretty far from the case. Some particularly pathetic and disrespectful people went after 94-year-old veteran Gene G.

The WWII veteran was wheelchair-dependent.

At the age of 94, Gene was still remarkably articulate and sharp. It was simply his age catching up to him that led to him needing a wheelchair. The man couldn’t go anywhere without it.

Someone, or some people, in this case, stole Gene’s electric wheelchair. It was kept outside his home, visible to the prying eyes of anyone without any regard for human decency.

This is what gave thieves the opportunity they needed, and this is also how he came to receive what he called a blessing later on.

Even worse, the thieves didn’t bother to do a clean job.

They ripped his electric wheelchair right off the lift.

They also damaged the lift in the process.

I guess they were in a hurry?

“I’m deeply depressed. They did a terrible thing, and they did a sloppy job.” – Gene said to News3lv

It was early in the morning, about 7:30, that the theft was discovered. Coming out to grab the paper, the sight of a missing electric wheelchair and a damaged lift caught the eye of his caregiver, Mary.

Gene was devastated.

This was no way to treat someone who staked their life for the country you live in. However, trying to find the wheelchair wasn’t worth it anymore. All Gene and his caregiver could do was ask for help.

Gene took to walking with a cane in the meantime, which wasn’t easy.

He told News3lv what he wanted to ask the thieves.

“I’d ask them why and I’d doubt I’d get a straight answer. And I’d have to tell them you just took my mobility away. That’s not right.”

Even more, something bad could have happened to Mary had she gone out at the wrong time. Losing the wheelchair was bad, but he was thankful he didn’t lose Mary or see her get hurt.

“If Mary had gone out there while they were here doing it, she could have been injured or killed. It’s very scary.”

The story made its way to the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association.

The moment someone from the group learned of Gene’s situation, the next step to take was obvious. The words were simple but very effective. “Hey, we need to do something. He’s one of ours.”

When your association is all about veterans, a WWII veteran like Gene is almost royalty. Gene was present for the Normandy Landings and the liberation of the Philippines.

Gene’s services were kind of a big deal.

They rode to his house and pulled up with their leather jackets and open hearts.

Around they passed some funds, pitching in to help Gene. They set up a GoFundme to get all the help they could get. In a matter of days, the GoFundme was a massive success. It earned 7,000 dollars – more than enough to get Gene a new electric wheelchair.

Buying him a new wheelchair was the least they could do.

At 94-years-old over 70 years since Gene participated in the war, the children of all the people he helped to liberate are taking care of him.

Now Gene looks at his wheelchair theft differently. He sees it as a blessing and thanks the Lord for what it taught him – and the people it introduced him to!

Selflessness is repaid with selflessness.

Makes for quite a touching story, doesn’t it?

The number of veterans like Gene depending on a criminally expensive healthcare system is beyond count. Seeing the younger, working-age people giving all they can to help is nothing short of sweet and heartfelt.

See the heartwarming moment in the video below.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: Fox5 Las Vegas, News3lv