Justin Rozier never got to meet his dad. When he was only nine months old, Army 1st Lt. Jonathan Rozier was lost while serving overseas, leaving him and his mother, Jessica Johns.
Jessica spoke to her husband only 12 hours before he died, updating him on their sweet boy.
While this story comes to us from 2017, it is still as resonant today as it was then.
After Jonathan died, Jessica was left trying to pick up the pieces of their life in Texas. She had to figure out how to live without her husband, both emotionally and financially.
One of the choices she had to make was to relinquish her husband’s beloved black 1999 Toyota Celica convertible. She didn’t have the money to pay the loan and no one was driving it, so she had little choice, reported NBC News.
Fast-forward through the next 15 years to the then-teenaged Justin Rozier. Justin had always longed to know his father and cherished everything he had of his.
He had his father’s dog tags, photos, and other treasured possessions, but he couldn’t shake the idea of having something his father really loved: his car. He tried to explain it, but couldn’t. He just wanted to sit in the same seat as his dad did, in a car that his dad loved. He was about to turn 16 and that car was the only thing he wanted.
Jessica decided to try to find the car for her son, knowing it was highly unlikely that she would be successful. Even so, she felt like she had to at least try for her son. She put her story out on social media and Justin’s story quickly spread throughout the world.
Amazingly, she found the car.
The car’s owner was hesitant to sell it, but eventually gave in. However, now Jessica had to figure out a way to come up with the money to buy it, get it all the way home, and fix it so it would be safe for her son to drive.
When Justin’s 16th birthday came about, they couldn’t wait to surprise him with it. His reaction as the car comes rolling in is something you cannot miss.
Enter Kyle Fox and his non-profit organization, Follow the Flag. Kyle managed to raise enough money to buy the car and get it to Jessica and Justin through the goodness of his heart. On top of that, he found volunteers to fix it up for them.
