_Happy boy Posted March 20, 2021 Posted March 20, 2021 PEPPERELL – Carl Morgan must have felt like he was on a game show. “Carl Morgan, come on down. You’re our next contestant. And the next prize up for grabs is … A NEW CAR!” And the price was right indeed. In fact, it’s the best price ever. Free. Morgan, his girlfriend, Elizabeth Crowther, and their 10-month-old daughter, Paisleigh, drove home to Lowell from 1A Auto Parts in Pepperell in their new 2011 Honda CRV, completely overhauled and spiffed up by the folks at 1A, as is their custom. It even included two new child safety seats, one for Paisleigh, one for Morgan’s 7-year-old son, Carl John. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s put it in reverse, all the way back to 2009. Life-changing decision Chad Morgan graduated from Greater Lowell Technical High School with the same decision any other high-school grad has to make — college, workforce, military. He chose door No. 3, enlisting in the Marine Corps — the 2nd Tank Battalion, Alpha Company, to be exact. In December 2010, the 2nd Tank Battalion deployed to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, where they remained until 2013. Morgan made the trip in 2011, but on Oct. 2 of that year, an IED exploded. He hit his head so hard, it caused permament damage to the optic nerve in his right eye. He was Medivac’d out, and doctors tried to figure out how to restore his sight. They couldn’t. He was sent home in 2014 with blurry vision in his right eye, a condition he says he has gotten used to and that no longer hinders him from taking part in normal activities. Morgan got a job as a custodian for the Lowell School Department, mainly at Lowell High School though he has done tours at Lincoln Elementary as well. The problem was, he didn’t have a car. He’d have to borrow one or Uber to work. “He spent 300 bucks one month on Uber,” said his mother, Mary Ann Morgan. So he started to put the word around to friends that he was looking for a cheap car, just something to get him to work and back or to take his daughter to the park. One friend who’s plugged in to local veterans groups called him the next day and said there was a group looking to donate a car to a local veteran. He hooked him up with someone else who told him to fill out an application to let the group know a little about him and why a car was so important for him. A week later, the guy called him and told him the car was his. “I was beside myself,” Morgan says. “I couldn’t believe it.” Knight’s chivalry Marian Knight is the daughter and sister of Marines, and two nephews also served in the military. A retired teacher from Nashua, N.H., she found herself with one car too many when her husband died last year. Her late husband’s car was newer and had fewer miles, so it was with regret that she decided to give up her beloved 2011 Honda CRV. “It’s a wonderful car,” she said. “It was practically my home, me and my dog. I drove that car all over the place. It was hard for me to give it up.” She didn’t want to just sell it to a used-car dealer. She wanted it to go to someone who really needed it, preferably a veteran. She told a neighbor, who told a friend who is the head mechanic at 1A Auto in Pepperell. That friend, Sue Ricciardi, took a look at the car and said 1A would love to have it so they could fix it up while making videos of the repairs. That’s what 1A Auto Parts does. They film how-to DIY videos on car repairs and release them on their YouTube channel. They have about 1.25 million subscribers, making 1A Auto, from the little town of Pepperell, Mass., the largest producer of such videos in the industry, with more than 600 employees in facilities nationwide. So 1A took the car off Knight’s hands, replaced everything from headlights and tires to brakes and suspension, then detailed it and tuned it up. After all the repairs — all videotaped for 1A’s YouTube followers — the only thing they needed was someone to give it to. Green light Like Knight, Rick Green comes from a military family. His father, Merle, retired from the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel. When Rick and his brother, Mike, built up 1A Auto to the point where it was a national force in its field, they realized they wanted to give back to the community and, specifically, to veterans. “We grew up understanding the sacrifices made by servicemen and women,” said Rick Green, CEO of 1A. “And we also understood the impact on families.” Through his friend and employee John MacDonald, Green got to know about a group called Veterans Assisting Veterans. MacDonald, a Dracut resident and director of real estate and public relations for 1A, is on the board of VAV. A couple years ago, MacDonald suggested that 1A donate one of their refurbished cars to the Travis Mills Foundation, a facility in Maine that supports veterans in overcoming physical obstacles, strengthening their families, and providing well-deserved rest and relaxation. “It was a lovely way to give back,” Green said. So when 1A took possession of Knight’s 2011 Honda CRV, Green realized that, once all the work was done on it, it was in great shape, even with the odometer topping 170,000 miles. He told MacDonald to find a veteran who needed a reliable car. “It’s an older car, but it’s in pretty good condition,” Green said. “I figured once we fixed it up, it’s the perfect car to give to a veteran in need.” Enter Carl Morgan. He had no car of his own to get to and from work, instead borrowing his girlfriend’s car, carpooling, calling Uber or even hoofing it. “I didn’t have my own sense of independence,” he said. “I want to be able to take my daughter to the park in my own car.” A light in the dark On Thursday afternoon, in the nondescript office building called Pepperell Place on Mill Street in Pepperell that houses 1A Auto, Green handed the keys and title of the CRV to Morgan at the end of a 20-minute ceremony attended by dozens of veterans, town officials and other dignitaries. Former state Rep. Geoff Diehl was there. Francisco Urena, former state secretary of veterans affairs was there. Representatives from VAV were there. Scott Hyder from the local nonprofit Hidden Battles, which helps veterans and first responders suffering from PTSD, was there. In fact, it was Hyder who donated and installed the two new child safety seats in the CRV. Marian Knight was even there to give her old car a final farewell and wish Morgan well. VAV board members gave Morgan $300 in gift cards to Market Basket and $200 to Haffner’s for gas. Chip Detwiller, owner of Pepperell Place, figuring Morgan needed somewhere to drive his family to, gave Morgan a $500 gift card for a hotel on the Cape. Cub Scouts from Pack 1455 presented Morgan with handmade thank-you cards. When it was time for the man of the hour to address the crowd, the moment got the best of him. “It’s so warming and reassuring that all these people are here to help me and all veterans. There are a lot of dark paths for a lot of veterans, like myself,” he said, finally unable to hold back the emotions. “This a light for us. It shows everyone that if you help these people in the dark, that there is always someone to help.” If it was a game show, it would be like winning the Showcase Showdown, getting the answer right on a Daily Double when you bet it all, and winning the grand prize without having to phone a friend. If it was a game show … but it wasn’t. It was veterans assisting a veteran. It was people giving a hand up, not a handout. It was, simply, an act of generosity by a few that made a family’s life easier. And that’s why life is better than any game show. Dan Phelps’ email address is dphelps@lowellsun.com.
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