Roy Exum
Josh Cyganik and his crew take care of the “road bed” for Union Pacific in Pendleton, Oregon. Every day Josh meets his crew at the shop, which is across the street from an old man who sits on his porch most of the day. Josh had never spoken to the man but the two have waved to one another for the best part of four years.
One day this July a couple of teen-age boys were walking down the street when they spied the old man’s house, which hasn’t been painted or maintained in quite a while.
“Look at that piece of junk. That place needs to be burned down …”
Josh was out by his truck, so if he heard it he knew the old man did, too. When he looked on the porch, a 75-year-old man had his head bowed, obviously hurt and knowing there was little he could do. He was stretched as it is, but Josh could sense his embarrassment.
“I stewed over it for several days and couldn’t get the pain to go away. Some of the crew said they’d help out if he could get some paint so Josh called his pal Brian Christensen at the Tum-a-Lum lumber yard and explained the situation. Christensen said he’d give him what he needed so now Josh Cyganik walked to the porch when the old man smiled at him.
“Sir, my name is Josh Cyganik,” the 32-year-old trackman said, finding Leonard Bullock warm and kind. “Mr. Bullock, what cha’ say you let me and some of my friends paint your house? It won’t cost you anything … we’ve got the paint and lumber donated … and … well, it’s something that would mean a lot to us if you’d agree.”
Leonard, who was once a fork-lift operator, was darn-near speechless. “When would you do it?” the grateful man asked, and Lord only knows why but Josh blurted, “This Saturday.”
Josh and a couple of other Union Pacific trackmen were soon circling the house, realizing they’d bitten off a pretty good chew. So when Josh got home, he went to his Facebook page and sent a note to his family and friends, asking for volunteer help. Josh was scared he wouldn’t have enough hands to get the job done in just a day after he studied the task but Facebook came through. “The post blew up like wildfire. It was shared over 6,000 times.”
When Josh got to the job at 8 a.m. on July 18, there were more than 20 volunteers standing in the yard, ready to go. By 9 a.m. there was a steady parade coming to lend a hand. He quit counting when he got to 100 and more people arrived in waves. People brought donations, platters of sandwiches and hot food. There were cakes, cookies and a delicious amount of laughter. Starbucks sent over six gallons of water and iced tea. And Leonard Bullock absolutely couldn’t believe his eyes.
Rotten wood was replaced and the old house began to turn into a warm beige color. A crowd of friends from Union Pacific -- all skilled craftsmen – literally attacked the worst problems and, oh look, is that new porch furniture in the back of that truck headed this way? It will look nice on the brand new porch.
From start to finish, Josh and his volunteer army transformed the entire house in just nine hours. At 5 o’clock almost everybody had gone but carloads of people were driving by to marvel at how good the Bullock house had turned out and what the people of Pendleton, Oregon, can do for each other.
“It was just a good vibe,” Josh laughed. “Everybody was happy and excited to be part of it. We got a bunch of donations throughout the day from people who couldn’t work but wanted to help. Yeah, it was a random act of kindness but, to me, it was more out of respect. I was raised to respect the people who came before you, to help others out who don’t have much. Leonard can sit on his porch for the rest of his years feeling good about his home.”
Once the media heard, here came the newspapers and TV. The story has also gone viral. “According to the media I’m some sort of hero. I am not a hero – I just overheard something that bothered me. Anyone else would have done the same thing,” said the 32-year-old Cyganik. “Everyone has it in their heart to do things like this.”
What’s funny is that now Josh and Leonard still wave but now they talk. Do they ever. Josh met Leonard’s wife, Dorothy, of course, and Cyganik said he was not surprised at all to find “They are great people. You never know much about people unless you get to know their struggles. They simply couldn’t afford to fix the house up, that’s all.
“It means everything to me that people from all over the county showed up to help. They got to know Leonard and Dorothy, too, so really this was a community thing.”
Just before he put his tired body to bed after what might have been the best nine hours of work in his life, a friend sent him a text about 10 o’clock. “It said Leonard and Dorothy were still sitting on the porch, just grinning ear to ear.”
royexum@aol.com