A father who had just moved to Colorado from Oklahoma noticed police officers looking into the windows of his car. What happened next left him stunned.
James Schweikhard moved from Oklahoma to Colorado with his 10-year-old daughter in search of a fresh start.
“I packed up everything that we own in the truck and … we just drove here,” the father said. “It was more of a risk staying in Oklahoma. I couldn’t get a job for anything, couldn’t get a place to live.”
Because of his struggle with finding a job in Oklahoma, Schweikhard and his daughter were forced to live in his Suburban. However, the vehicle had broken down after they arrived in Colorado, so they were sleeping in the SUV, while the father had to walk his daughter to school every day.
The girl’s school became concerned that the father and daughter were living in a car, so they called local police to investigate. Lakewood Police Officer James Butler went to the scene to find out for himself.
“I saw them looking at my truck, I said ‘Officers, what is going on?’” Schweikhard told KUSA. “[He] said ‘We’re trying to help you.’ I said, ‘Ok, I can accept that.’”
The father added, “I’m not used to getting help from cops.”
When Butler heard Schweikhard’s story and learned that he lost his job and his car was dead, he wanted to help out.
“It was the right thing to do,” Butler said. “Because at any point in time in our lives any one of us can be in that same situation — offering assistance to another human being is the right thing to do.”
Butler and fellow Lakewood Police officers were able to help the father and daughter find a shelter in which to stay. They also had Ace Towing bring Schweikhard’s SUV to Sun Valley Automotive to have it fixed. Both companies happily agreed to donate their services.
“Feels really different to help someone who you know is down on their luck,” said Sun Valley Automative owner Jere Burton.
Photo Credit: KUSA
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