Father's Day surprise replenishes NFL fan's memorabilia
Posted at: 06/17/2012 10:36 PM
| Updated at: 06/17/2012 11:50 PM
By: Dan Levy
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ROTTERDAM JUNCTION - Jason Kimble knew there'd be friends and family over at his house Sunday for a Father's Day barbeque. What he didn't know was that a couple of people he had never met before would also be stopping by.
Kimble, the father of three, from Rotterdam Junction, is a life-long Chicago Bears fan. Last summer, flood waters from Tropical Storm Irene blitzed through his garage, destroying all of his precious pigskin memorabilia.
On Sunday, he experienced a Father's Day surprise right out of the Doing-Good-Things-for-Good People Playbook.
The element of surprise has always been a formidable tactic in football warfare, on Sunday afternoon it became a viable Father's Day gift-giving strategy.
In recent weeks, Valerie and Charles Beekman, of Amsterdam, began collecting Chicago Bears memorabilia after learning of Jason Kimble's plight. What the Beekman's had going for them was their son, Josh Beekman -- a former Amsterdam High School and Boston College football star -- who played three seasons the Bears.
"Everybody in the family, his cousins, his grandmother, his aunt, everybody gave something," said Valerie Beekman, also an Amsterdam alder person.
The box delivered in person by the Beekmans made the day for Kimble, who, like many residents of Rotterdam Junction, endured unimaginable hardship over the last nine months, both by witnessing the flood and then coping with its aftermath.
"I will always be a Bears fan," Kimble said. "I'm just glad somebody local that I got to hear about became a Bear and it's helping me out too from losing all my stuff that I lost."
Even while coping with his own personal tragedy, Jason Kimble found time to help others in his community, having been named Volunteer Firefighters of the Year in Rotterdam Junction.
"It's for a good person who loves a team that really means a lot to him," Valerie Beekman said.
"It just felt so good to see him appreciate it," Charles added.
The way the Beekmans see things, they're simply repaying an old debt.
"Twenty-five years ago, we lost everything in a fire," Charles mentioned. "We know what it's all about and people helped us."
With the unexpected help he received, Jason now has the incentive to finish the work he's already began on his man cave, also known as his garage, which, of course, will be furnished, painted and decorated in the colors of the Chicago Bears.
"Any Father's Day with my kids is great, but this is awesome," Kimble stated.
Josh Beekman is currently an assistant coach at Eastern Kentucky University. While his parents were at the Kimble's house Sunday, Jason had a chance to speak with Josh on the telephone so that he could than him personally.
