Pay It Forward Stories 2020

Washington Corporations

I chose to give my card to the family of Ella Bennett. Ella has been diagnosed with FOXG1 Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that effects roughly 600 people in the world. FOXG1 Syndrome is caused by a mutation of the FOXG1 gene, which impacts brain development and function. This severe condition is characterized by seizures, inability to control body movements, gastrointestinal issues, and lack of speech. Ella will require lifelong medical care, adaptive equipment and therapies to manage her condition.

The family wishes to thank the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation for thinking of them and their sweet Ella

Montana Rail Link

The Northern Division Freestyle (NDF) is a nonprofit-based volunteer organization providing competitive freestyle skiing venues throughout the state of Montana and Idaho, encouraging participants of all ages with emphasis on youth. Northern Division Freestyle offers organized US Ski Association sanctioned events in all of the freestyle disciplines: Moguls, Dual Moguls, Terrain Park events, Big Air events. Competing in these Northern Division events is the first step for our Montana athletes towards a spot on the U.S. Freestyle Team and the U.S. Olympic Team. The money from the card was used to purchase an insulated 5 person tent that will be used for the scorekeeper and electronic equipment, a 22 inch scoop shovel that will keep the jumps safe throughout the events, 5 bundles of flags used for building mogul courses and an ice anchor drill adapter.

Washington Corporations

Thank you for the opportunity to help people in my community! I divided my $500 pay it forward card into two $250 grocery store gift cards. I was happy to give these gift cards to two different families that are having a tough winter. Both families were beyond appreciative. It was sure nice to help them out and put a smile on their faces!

Montana Resources

I would like to thank the Dennis & Phyllis Washington foundation for allowing me to be a part of the Washington Companies 2020 Pay it forward employee charitable giving program. The charitable case that I have chosen is the backpack program. After talking to friends and family explaining Pay it forward employee charitable giving program and how it works, I asked them the question what charitable causes they would donate to if given the opportunity. As we all know there are so many great charitable cause to choose from but unfortunately, I can only choose one. The backpack program was explained to me by a volunteer reading teacher at the local schools in Butte, as she was explaining the back-pack program with tears in her eyes it made me realize how lucky we are to have enough food to eat and money to spend.

The Washington Companies 2020 Pay it forward employee charitable giving program does a lot more than just give away money it allows us all to view life from a different perspective, make changes in others live’s and experience the positive feeling known as the helper’s high.

The backpack program

The backpack program provides bags of food for children who are chronically hungry. Students are identified by teachers, and volunteers discretely deposit the bags in the children’s backpacks during the school days. The backpack program distributes to over 400 students pre-week. Funding for the backpack program comes from the annual Empty Bowls fundraiser, hosted annually in coordination with the Butte High School Art Club. Established in 2018 the Butte High School Bag program provides bags of food to high school students. These bags contain enough food to cover meals for the weekend, High school bags are available anonymously and include items for breakfast, lunch and snack items for two days.

Empty Bowls is a dinner event supporting the Foodbank’s Backpack Program. They were able to start this program in 2014 to help those chronically hungry children. Teachers identify the children who are eligible for the program. They will receive a bag of food on Friday that will provide them breakfast and lunch items for two days. They are currently distributing over 400 bags each weekend. The distribution continues during the summer months at various summer feeding locations.

Local potters work for over 4 months throwing 1100 soup size bowls and 100 large serving bowls for this event. With the purchase of a ticket you will receive one of the bowls, soup prepared by local restaurants, take part in a silent auction, and enjoy live entertainment.

They need to raise $62,000 per year to continue feeding the children enrolled in the program.

Butte Emergency Food Bank
(406) 782-6230
1019 E 2nd St
Butte, MT 59701

Modern Machinery

Morgan McQuillan was first diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, at the age of 5 in May of 1999. She was scheduled to start kindergarten in the fall but instead started chemotherapy. In September of that same year, she had a very rare amputation done on her right leg to remove the tumor. Morgan successfully learned how to walk with a prosthetic and went on to beat the cancer. Then 8 years later, when she was 12 years old, she was rediagnosed with Osteosarcoma of the soft tissue. She underwent surgery to remove the spots. At the age of 14, Morgan lost her father to Leukemia. At the age of 15, Morgan relapsed for the third time and a tumor was found in her upper jaw. She underwent chemo as well as surgery to remove the upper part of her jaw and was fitted with a partial mouth prosthesis. Once again, she went into remission. Two years later, during the fall of her senior year of high school, she was rediagnosed with Osteosarcoma, with one tumor in her soft tissue and another one on her pelvis. At this time, Morgan was told her options were very limited as she had built a tolerance up to most chemotherapy and any surgery they could do would be very extreme and diminish the quality of her life. At this time, it was clear that Morgan would never be fully cured of cancer. Rather than the doctors giving up on Morgan, they decided to try an unconventional form of treatment which consisted of radiation and chemotherapy. This was one of many miracles that was given to Morgan, the treatment worked and killed that tumor. Due to the radiation Morgan endured, she began having extreme pain in her pelvis and had to learn how to deal with that. Morgan experienced two more occurrences of Osteosarcoma in her right pelvis by the age of 22. Both times, the tumors were killed with a surgery called ablation. However, this surgery caused her to lose the feeling on the right side of her hip.

In January of this year, Morgan was rediagnosed for the seventh time with Osteosarcoma. The doctors also found a tumor on her small intestine that needed to be removed. Treatment options were once again limited. Morgan was given the option to undergo a surgery called a Hemipelvectomy, which she chose. This surgery removed her entire right hip and the remainder of her right leg. Morgan is still in the hospital to this date recovering from this surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN where she has undergone the majority of her treatment. She is experiencing a significant amount of stomach problems due to the removal of the tumor on her intestine which is slowing down her progress. She is simultaneously going through physical therapy and is now learning how to be mobile with just one leg. She will rely on a wheelchair or a walker to get her around for the rest of her life. The rest of Morgan’s treatment plan is up in the air at the point. Once Morgan returns home, she will be staying at her mother’s house outside of Joliet, MT which is currently undergoing some remodeling to make it handicap accessible for Morgan.

Modern Machinery

Morgan McQuillan was first diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, at the age of 5 in May of 1999. She was scheduled to start kindergarten in the fall but instead started chemotherapy. In September of that same year, she had a very rare amputation done on her right leg to remove the tumor. Morgan successfully learned how to walk with a prosthetic and went on to beat the cancer. Then 8 years later, when she was 12 years old, she was rediagnosed with Osteosarcoma of the soft tissue. She underwent surgery to remove the spots. At the age of 14, Morgan lost her father to Leukemia. At the age of 15, Morgan relapsed for the third time and a tumor was found in her upper jaw. She underwent chemo as well as surgery to remove the upper part of her jaw and was fitted with a partial mouth prosthesis. Once again, she went into remission. Two years later, during the fall of her senior year of high school, she was rediagnosed with Osteosarcoma, with one tumor in her soft tissue and another one on her pelvis. At this time, Morgan was told her options were very limited as she had built a tolerance up to most chemotherapy and any surgery they could do would be very extreme and diminish the quality of her life. At this time, it was clear that Morgan would never be fully cured of cancer. Rather than the doctors giving up on Morgan, they decided to try an unconventional form of treatment which consisted of radiation and chemotherapy. This was one of many miracles that was given to Morgan, the treatment worked and killed that tumor. Due to the radiation Morgan endured, she began having extreme pain in her pelvis and had to learn how to deal with that. Morgan experienced two more occurrences of Osteosarcoma in her right pelvis by the age of 22. Both times, the tumors were killed with a surgery called ablation. However, this surgery caused her to lose the feeling on the right side of her hip.
In January of this year, Morgan was rediagnosed for the seventh time with Osteosarcoma. The doctors also found a tumor on her small intestine that needed to be removed. Treatment options were once again limited. Morgan was given the option to undergo a surgery called a Hemipelvectomy, which she chose. This surgery removed her entire right hip and the remainder of her right leg. Morgan is still in the hospital to this date recovering from this surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN where she has undergone the majority of her treatment. She is experiencing a significant amount of stomach problems due to the removal of the tumor on her intestine which is slowing down her progress. She is simultaneously going through physical therapy and is now learning how to be mobile with just one leg. She will rely on a wheelchair or a walker to get her around for the rest of her life. The rest of Morgan’s treatment plan is up in the air at the point. Once Morgan returns home, she will be staying at her mother’s house outside of Joliet, MT which is currently undergoing some remodeling to make it handicap accessible for Morgan.
Thank you for reading Morgan’s story.
Submitted on March 4, 2020 by Kate Croft, Morgan’s sister.

Montana Resources

I am giving my card to my son’s kindergarten teacher. She is a great teacher and all the kids just love her. Her name is Ms. Colvin and she teaches at Margaret Leary school here in Butte MT. This is her first year teaching and she could use all the help she can get for her class. These teachers usually end up buying things for kids if they don’t come with supplies or just learning games for their classroom. Thank you so much she will be so excited! Can’t wait to hand her the card and surprise my son in his class. What a great program thanks for letting me be a part of such a great cause. Have a great day.

Montana Resources

First off thank you to the Dennis and Phyllis Washington foundation for letting me participate in the Pay it Forward program, a program that helps many individuals, families and organizations. This year i chose to give my card to Claire O’Connor. Claire is the 22 year old daughter of some good friends of mine who was diagnosed with MS about a year and a half ago. She is currently undergoing infusion treatments to help her deal with this disease. Having MS myself i know how a person can get down with how they feel. i explained to Claire the pay it forward program and its origin. I explained to her that she could use her $500 in anyway she would like whether it be for medicine,medical bills or anything she wanted. Seeing the big smile on her face when i told her the amount it was for i hope Claire spoils herself with a shopping trip or maybe a day at the spa, anything to maybe take her mind off of her MS. Thanks again for a wonderful program.

Montana Rail Link

As a volunteer at The Way Christian School in Livingston Montana, I identified their need of a new copier. Their old Canon copier was very fond of eating several papers as it printed. Staples of Bozeman was kind enough to sweeten the sale of a new Brother business machine with a sharply discounted price and a box of copier paper.

My remaining funds were donated to the Shane Lelani Center for the Arts in the form of tickets to see the current musical production of “Big Fish”.

The tickets, 5 adults and 4 children, were then given to 4 families in the Livingston area. 2 Adult tickets given, went to a couple who spend all of their free time volunteering in many ways in Livingston. The remaining tickets went to 3 single parent homes to give them an evening of entertainment that these parents wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford.

Montana Rail Link

Sports were such a big part of my life so I like to give back to kids organizations that I belonged to.

Montana Rail Link

I donated the pay it forward card to youth athletics.

Montana Rail Link

I wanted to help with events involving kids. I donated to those organizations in our local area that focus on kid development.

Montana Rail Link

Having kids play in athletics and seeing their teammates sometimes struggle with the financial commitments. We decided to help some of those kids less fortunate be able to continue with their passions.

Montana Rail Link

I donated this years card to a non profit youth sports organization. They use the funds to equip young athletes with safety gear and such.

Modern Machinery

My Daughter is an RN for a Local Surgery Group Here in Centralia Wa. So she see’s many Families in Need I contacted her to see if she knew of someone who could use a little help, she responded with the following, Rosemary Ragan was Diagnosed with Lung Cancer that had Metastasized to her Lymph Nodes in August of 2017, she received many treatments and the Cancer was close to being gone when she got an Infection so the treatments had to stop for a period of time, Her new scans showed Cancer now in Her Lungs and she has begun New and very expensive treatments 2-20-2020, Her Husband has had to return to work in his early 70s to try and keep up with the medical Bills because their insurance does not cover all of the expenses so I felt a little help would go along way with this Family I would not wish any Medical issues on anyone and hope this helps.

Montana Rail Link

As I have done the last few years, I gave the gift card to ducks unlimited to be used at there event in March. Ducks unlimited is a non-profit organization that helps preserve the wetlands in Montana. Thank you for allowing me to donate to such a great cause.

Washington Corporations

I donated my giving card to the Shriner’s Hospital for Children (Transportation Fund). The funds will be used to help in the transportation of the families to the Shriner’s Hospital.

Montana Rail Link

I was lucky to be drawn again this year for the Pay It Forward giving card and I had decided this year to help out animals. I stopped in at Help For Homeless Pets and talked to Ashley. HHP is a no kill non-profit organization and they take in all animals, get them their proper shots, spay or neuter them. After talking to Ashley a bit, I decided this was the place to donate my card to. I like what they are doing there. The cages are very big so the animals are not cramped at all, and the cages were kept clean. This donation will help them in many ways to make these animals more comfortable until they are adopted.

I would like to thank Dennis and Phyllis again for allowing me to make this donation to a worthy cause.

Washington Corporations

I gave my card to the Knights of Columbus to use for their boots for kids program. My father, Daniel Conway was a Knight for over 60 years. The Knights look to serve our local community and my dad was very passionate about this program within their organization. He would shop year-end sales so he could purchase boots for as many kids as possible at Franklin and Lowell schools. This program is funded through donations and the Knights fund-raising efforts. When I inquired about the status of the boots program, they informed me that they were not able to fund this program this year. Approximate annual cost to fully fund is $1,500. This card will purchase one-third of the boots needed and I hope, create new energy for a program my dad loved and supported. Thank you.

Montana Rail Link

A young family in our community has a child with a medical condition that required extensive surgery. They have been struggling to pay for these medical expenses. We gave the card to them to help ease some of the burden.

Montana Rail Link

I donated my Pay it Forward card to youth athletic programs in the local community.

Montana Rail Link

My 2020 Pay it Forward card was donated to a non profit sports organization. The funds are used for equipment and fees to play at the highest level. Some of these kids will have an opportunity for athletic scholarships down the road. Without the help of sponsors and donations some of these kids couldn’t afford to continue with their passion for the game!

Montana Rail Link

I wanted to “pay it forward” for multiple families. The first person I found was a woman named Tiffany with two young children, she was putting items back so I asked her if I could pay it forward. She accepted. I ran another female at Walmart whom I overheard talking about going to the food bank. She was purchasing formula and diapers instead of food for herself, so I offered to buy her items plus some. Finally, I bought a bunch of non perishable food items and donated them to the Lolo Community Center. Thank you for allowing me to experience putting joy in others lives.

Montana Resources

I chose to give the card to my niece who delivered her baby girl, Raegan, at 22 weeks weighing 1 pound and 3 ounces. She is only a few days old but is fighting hard to continue to live. She was born in a medical facility that is well known for being able to handle the treatment that she will need which is a blessing. The road ahead of them is a long one but we pray for her as well as her mom and dad so they will be up to the challenges ahead.

Montana Rail Link

Since December 28, 2016 the Joe Smietanka Memorial Scholarship at Helena College (University of Montana) has assisted students with felony convictions in meeting the cost of books, supplies, or tools necessary for an accredited degree or technical proficiency certificate.

While Helena College represents a great value, many students with prior felony convictions face an uphill climb meeting the myriad of expenses associated higher education. The Joe Smietanka Memorial Scholarship believes in recognizing and helping deserving individuals who have turned, or are turning, their lives around. We think any assistance now will later pay exponentially greater dividends to society.501(c)3 Tax deductible donations can be made directly by mail to: The Helena College Foundation, POB 629, Helena MT 59624; or via PayPal at the Foundation’s website: helenacollegefoundation.org. In any instance, make your check payable, or include a notation that the funds are to be deposited, to The Joe Smietanka Memorial Scholarship Account.

Thank you for remembering Joe and changing the world, a little bit at a time.

Montana Rail Link

Donated the entire card to an organization called BARK (Billings Animal Rescue Kare) They are a small, amazing non-kill animal shelter that is wonderful to their animals and finds them good homes. We got our rescue dog Sasha from there 9 years ago and I remember what an awesome organization they were and wanted to help them out with this pay it forward opportunity.

Modern Machinery

I gave the giving card to a family that was in need of food for there home. There are so many people in this world that work hard and still need help providing for there family. I myself know what it is like to struggle to put food on the table. i was glad i could help.

Montana Rail Link

I chose to use my card to purchase socks and underwear for the Tumbleweed program. They help homeless teens in the Billings area. People always donate used clothes and food to the program, but people don’t think about socks and underwear. These items have to be new or they can’t take them. I was lucky enough to have a Sam’s Club membership so I was able to maximize the $500 and get more product than I could at a regular store.

Montana Rail Link

Hi there,
Thank you for letting me be a part of that amazing cause!!!

My good friend in Las Vegas NV Royce Woodward have a 4 years old daughter who got diagnosed with a cancer about a year ago , after a year of fighting (lots of round of chemotherapy) she’s in remission!!!! (She’s still going through couple round of chemotherapy but she’s so strong!!! She’s our hero!!! Her beautiful a strong family is really thankful for that gift card!!!!! Thank you very much.

You can go checkout their Facebook page
Team izzy – the princess warrior, our hero!!!

Montana Rail Link

Prairie County Hospital in Terry Montana
The hospital is having a fund raiser and the money is going to be used to update residents rooms, sidewalk repair and much needed medical equipment for patient care.

Montana Rail Link

I chose to donate to Charity Water. They are a great charity helping with providing clean drinking water to third world countries. Diseases from dirty water kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. The water helps keep kids in school, especially women because they don’t have to go and collect it and have more time to do other things.

Thank you for the opportunity for me to donate to such a great cause.

Montana Rail Link

There is an ice rink at Pineview Park, in Missoula, that is maintained lovingly and with serious commitment by a bunch of volunteers from the neighborhood. They have been doing this for 44 years, late nights and very early mornings making ice so they can count on their adult pick up games and so kids from all over can learn to skate, meet up with their friends and find the same joy they do playing hockey. This year they got a zamboni which should help maintaining the ice so much easier, and provide better ice for skating. They were $500 dollars short on their Go Fund Me page – Pineview Park Zamboni – so that is where we sent the money. We love skating at Pineview park, its one of those neighborhood privileges that we cant believe we get to benefit from. Walk to the park, pop on your skates, suffer through tying your kids skates and boom – best day ever. Thanks Pay it forward and Washington Companies.

Montana Resources

I gave my card to the Bair family in Butte. Their son, Hayes Bair was diagnosed with Supraventicular Tachycardia at 11 weeks old during a visit to his physician. Supraventicular Tachycardia is an abnormal fast hearbeat and is common but Hayes didnt respond to the medication and had to be life flighted to Denver for more advanced treatment. He will continue a long battle with fighting this as he is still too young (11 months) for the medical procedures to help him fight this. His mom, Jordan Blair, was very thankful for the Payitforward donation to help them out as in May they are headed back to Denver for a procedure to help him.

Montana Rail Link

Alex Barker is a senior at Capital High School in Helena. A few months ago he was diagnosed with Leukemia. He is currently responding to treatment at the Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City. As an athlete he knows how to win and I have no doubt he will win this battle. Because of his positive attitude along with his family, I feel he is the perfect recipient of the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation donation. Thank you for the opportunity to help this young man and his family.

Modern Machinery

I have chosen the following organization for my Pay It Forward Donation.
Old Dog Haven
Located in Oak Harbor, Washington

This is a “No Kill” specialty Animal Shelter that only take in Elderly/Senior dogs that have been abandoned or given up by their owners because they do not want to take care of them anymore or spend the money for the medical costs to treat them or prolong their lives.

These dogs come from animal shelters all over Washington that have major health issues and require medical expenses.
This organization nurses the dogs back to health and then find them homes that will make them comfortable and happy for the short time they have left to live.

The dogs that have non treatable issues they will house them and make them as comfortable as they can and give them a loving environment until they pass.

They told me this money card donation will go to towards medical surgeries and medications.

Montana Resources

I gave the card to Whittier elementary to be used for books for bikes. The school will be able to purchase 5 bikes

Montana Rail Link

I gave my card to Mike Coyle, He suffered a stroke in January. He is in rehabilitation and therapy. It will help with his medical expenses . It is really nice to be able to give like this. Mike is a pillar in the Drummond community.

Montana Rail Link

I am donating the Pay it Forward to Wyoming Bassethound Rescue. Holly Moen and the staff do a amazing job with rescuing, fostering, and adoption of Basset Hounds. A lot of the money donated to the rescue goes towards Vet bills, which i have seen first hand can be very costly. WBHR does not cut any corners either when it comes to the health of the dogs before they are adopted to their forever home. Thank you WBHR for your help with the Bassets, and thank you Dennis and Phyllis for your Pay It Forward and the opportunity to help!

Montana Rail Link

I chose the Montana Hope Project to receive my Giving Card. They are a non profit organization that grants wishes to Montana’s children with lifelong diseases or illnesses. I was once a recipient for the Montana Hope Project about 19 years ago. I was diagnosed with a severe case of Crohns Disease and Osteoarthritis at the young age of 10 on Halloween night. It is pretty rare for someone that young to get this disease and it hit pretty hard. I was in and out of the hospital for two years and missed a majority of 5th & 6th grade and had to to be home schooled. I also had severe depression for a long time thinking I could never be a normal kid again. The Montana Hope Project found out about my condition and a State Trooper (who at the time was the President of Montana Hope Project) came into my hospital room and asked me if I could have one wish, what would it be. As a ten year old kid, everyone’s wish is to go to Disney World. So once I was feeling better, they planned an all expenses paid trip to Disney World for me and all of my family for one week. I will never forget that day I got that wish as a kid and I will always try and give back to this wonderful organization whenever I can since it did so much for me and my family and a time of need. There was no way my family could ever afford a trip like that at any time due to all the medical bills and stuff that we had. I eventually went on to give back when it was time for me to do my Eagle Scout Project when I was fifteen. I gathered a team of people who would go on to help me throw a Parents Prom at the Hilton Garden Inn. It was a very successful night, we granted another wish the same night of the prom to a three year old girl who had Burkitt’s Lymphoma and raised $25,000.00 dollars to help pay for her wish along with 3-4 other wishes on top of it. This organization means a lot to me and I will always try to contribute whatever I can back to them. I want to thank the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation for putting together this awesome way to contribute back to the community and having the employees getting involved with it.

Montana Resources

This year we had an employee killed in an avalanche it was heartbreaking for so many of us I would like to pay it forward to his family