I thoroughly enjoyed a recent segment on CBS’s Sunday Morning program about a widowed 76-year-old Vietnam veteran, Danny Chauvin of Waveland, Mississippi.
CBS correspondent Steve Hartman tells us that following his retirement and especially after his wife died, Chauvin had way too much time on his hands.
He found himself dwelling on his loneliness and the trauma from his time in Vietnam. After returning from the war, Chauvin had been treated for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Now that he’s alone, things have become more difficult again.
“…To keep his sanity,” reports Steve Hartman, “he knew he also had to keep busy. But how?”
Chauvin realized that he missed all the little things he used to do for his wife around the house, the handyman jobs.
He posted a note on Facebook: If there’s any honey-do jobs that you can’t handle, I’m willing to help.
“And it spread,” Chauvin told Steven Hartman. “It spread like wildfire.”
Hartman tells us, “So now, on a daily basis, and sometimes four times a day, Chauvin fixes the hole in his heart by fixing just about everything else, like putting up a shower curtain, hanging up a porch swing and fixing a closet door.”
He does it all for free.
Most of Chauvin’s clients are women who call him the “Honey-Do Dude.” They say that Chauvin is about the only one they know willing to do the small chores and tasks.
“He shows so much kindness to people,” one of his customers told CBS News.
When the work is done, the only thing Chauvin requests is a photo with his customers to remind him that he is not alone.
“Right now, I’ve got a lot of friends,” he said.
To view a video of this heartwarming story, visit this link: How a Vietnam vet found healing as the “Honey-Do Dude” – CBS News
