SHENANDOAH JUNCTION — Aaron Raines, owner of Shenandoah Metal Fab in Shenandoah Junction, has a heart to help others — a trait that has been passed to his young son, Kip.
Following Hurricane Helene, Aaron began gathering supplies to take down to North Carolina to offer some assistance for those devastated by the storms.
Aaron shared that while he was in the planning stages and into collection of things needed by those who have lost nearly everything, if not everything, Kip asked what he could do to help the kids in the area. Specifically, Aaron explained, Kip wanted to collect some Matchbox cars and then travel with his dad to the Asheville area to hand them out — from one kid to another.
Kip, a 6-year-old kindergarten student at T.A. Lowery, set a goal of getting 600 cars.
“I reached out to C.J. Miller, with CJM Industries in North Carolina, and told him that my son wanted to help with the kids in need around the Asheville area,” Aaron said.
Aaron went on to share that Kip wanted to personally share those Matchbox or Hot Wheels cars with kids in need.
When heading to North Carolina, Aaron said he reached out to George Henry, at Hot Rods by George in Denver, North Carolina, who jumped on board and rounded up around 500 cars in a five-day period.
Kidwell Plumbing, locally, donated the first $100 toward purchasing cars and set Kip on track with the first purchase of approximately 82 cars. Other donations came from Raymond Staubs, Jr., Sheanndoah Metal Fab, John and Kathy Blue, CJM Industries, NC Foothills Die Cast Club, Constantine Cosmo Kogan and Kenny Arnold, along with Hot Rods by George.
Aaron shared that the venture was such a success, Kip wants to continue to collect cars for another potential trip to North Carolina, as well as to provide cars to children in other areas that have faced natural disasters or even children in hospitals, who could benefit from receiving a small gift — once again, from one kid to another.
Those who are interested in helping Kip help others may reach out to Aaron at Shenandoah Metal Fab for details on donating cars or funds for the purchase of cars. Call 304-596-3535 for more information.