Posted by Howard Richman on December 22 2009 at 13:26:54:
The above photo shows Aubree, Evan and Ericka Culp presenting a football, signed by the 2009 Steelers, to Tony Macaro. It accompanies a story in today´s Valley News Dispatch. Here is a selection:
The Dec. 2 burglary of Anthony Mascaro´s Avonmore restaurant left him discouraged, because he opened Tony´s Dog House last year to help infuse some good into hard-hit Westmoreland County.
His faith in the community was restored Monday in the form of two Avonmore teenagers who brought him a surprise Christmas present.
Ericka Culp, 15, and her sister Aubree, 13, presented Mascaro with $350 they raised over the past week and a football signed by all the members of the 2009 Steelers as well as Coach Mike Tomlin, donated by former Steeler Delton Hall.
"I´m flabbergasted. Totally, totally flabbergasted," Mascaro said as the sisters, along with 6-year-old brother Evan and parents Becky and Mark, surprised him at his Steelers-themed store.
Earlier this month, thieves made off with 400 hot dogs, as well as electronics and a jar of coins from Mascaro´s store, which he started last year with his retirement funds. What hit Mascaro the hardest was the theft of autographed pictures of Roberto Clemente and Dan Marino that were passed on to him from his grandfather, he said....
The girls, who are homeschooled, started a charity last year to encourage others with gestures of kindness, mom Becky said. Other projects have included a cake for a person´s birthday and presents to a gymnastics teammate who was injured.
"They are all great kids," she said. "They have great hearts."
Mascaro said the gesture restored his faith in the community.
"There are more good people out there than bad," he said. "Something bad like this brings out the good people."
It was the first time the Culp girls had met Mascaro.
"I´m just tickled pink," Mascaro said. "This is the nicest thing anyone´s ever done for me."
Howard