PASADENA, Texas – David Hickman has had a gaping hole on the side of his home for nearly nine months. It happened after a man in a stolen vehicle crashed into it on Dec. 2, 2022.
“He actually watched the guy back out and then [drive] down the street,” said his daughter, Theresa Hickman Lee.
The 76-year-old wasn’t harmed but his home took a beating.
Hickman Lee then found out her dad didn’t have home insurance and started saving what she could.
“We were saving up our coins,” Hickman Lee said.
Then January 24 came. An EF 3 tornado hit the Deer Park-Pasadena area “with an estimated maximum path length of 18 miles,” the National Weather Service said.
Hickman Lee’s own home had significant roof damage.
The money she was saving to fix her dad’s wall went to fixing her roof.
“And then we were like, ‘Okay we’re going to start over again and hopefully by the first of the year, hopefully, we could get a friend or somebody who knows what they’re doing to patch it up,’” Hickman Lee recalled.
Hickman lives across the street from L. F. Smith Elementary School. Since the incident, school leaders have been trying to figure out how they could help.
“We thought it was important, especially since he keeps an eye on our kids,” said Fina Govea, the school’s parent coordinator. “He keeps an eye on our crossing guards on our principals. So, we knew it was very important.”
Govea happened to mention it to Pasadena police officer David Garza as they were preparing for a back-to-school event this summer.
“We did the event, but I hadn’t heard from him,” Govea said. “Then last week he called and said, ‘Guess what? I just want to let you know, we’re coming over!’”
Over the weekend, Garza coordinated with Seabrook PD Officer C. Cardenas, Larry Aleman from the Pasadena City Permits Department, and Assistant Building Official James Smith to come out to Hickman’s home and make the repairs in eight hours.
“I’m flabbergasted. I’m speechless a little bit,” Hickman Lee said. “I mean, total strangers. They didn’t know my dad at all. They had no clue who he was.”
Garza called friends, organizations, and business owners to donate their time and supplies: Gladiator Roofing and Construction, Bathfitters, I.G.I.T. Ministries, and Materiales Amaya.
“The only thing they asked for, they didn’t even ask for acknowledgment. They just wanted to help,” Garza said. “These people put in their own time and money.”
Hickman Lee said she’s gained an extended family in Garza.
“The feeling of somebody caring other than family, beyond touching,” she said. “We will be eternally grateful for this. I told Officer Garza, ‘When I am able to pay it forward, I will. I will honor every one of these people who came and did this just to help my dad.’”
