(WSVN) - A Broward County deputy came to the aid of a man in need. The Nightteam’s Nicole Linsalata is on Dania Beach, where the deputy went “Above and Beyond the Call of Duty.”
BSO Deputy Marilyn Doster met Charles Hilliard during her off hours. She realized he didn’t have a car and she thought she could help. She and her BSO colleagues decided to take it one step further.
In a life of ups and downs, Charles chooses to celebrate the ups, especially in church.
He is a survivor of throat cancer, and he has a job at Finish Line Feed in Dania Beach. One of his customers is Deputy Doster, a horse owner.
BSO Deputy Marilyn Doster: “Every time I see him at work, he’s running circles around guys that are half his age, and I’m just always impressed with him. He told me that he was on hard times and that he had been involved in a car accident, and he doesn’t have transportation.”
The vibrant 58-year-old was walking to work every day or using the bus.
Anna Hilliard, Charles’ wife: “I didn’t want him walking in the rain or the cold, you know? So I said, ‘Charles, we just have to set up a budget, put it in our budget to go get a car.'”
But that seemed far off, until the day Deputy Doster offered him a 2004 Acura that she owns but does not really use.
BSO Deputy Marilyn Doster: “He asked me how much, and I told him, ‘I’m going to give it to you,’ and he was just ecstatic, and at that moment I knew that I was doing the right thing.”
Charles Hilliard: “My heart dropped.”
And then there’s this.
BSO Deputy Marilyn Doster: (to Charles) “Our Senior Day Shift Squad took up a donation, so we can help you get the registration and transfer the title, and it’s all taken care off.”
Another several hundred dollars he and his family don’t have to worry about. He is grateful for his friends at the Broward Sheriff’s Office and for the faith that, he says, helps keep him going.
There are still a few things that need to be done with the car. Deputy Doster was able to find an automotive shop, Ken’s Automotive in Dania Beach. They are taking care of it at no charge.
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