Overwhelmed by kindness.

When Jeff Bodenschatz was diagnosed with cancer five years ago, the Lake Township, Ohio, resident was determined to live as normal a life as possible. Mr. Bodenschatz, who is married and the father of three boys, continued his job with an environmental firm in Richfield, Ohio, and took his mind off his chemotherapy by staying involved in several things.

"I'm always looking forward to distractions from the treatments and all of the doctor's visits that I have to do to maintain my health," Bodenschatz told the Akron Beacon Journal. "The car and the kids' sporting events provide pleasant distrac tions from my health issues."

The car to which Jeff referred is a 1969 AMC Javelin that he bought shortly after learning he had cancer, with the intent of restoring it. However, his chemotherapy took its toll in both time and energy. Jeff's ability to continue the project waned.

"Jeff was getting weaker and couldn't spend as much time on the car as he wanted and I think he was getting discouraged that he would never finish it or drive it," Donna Nickel, a friend of the Bodenschatz family, told the newspaper.

Donna launched something she called "Operation Javelin" to attract people to help her friend finish his project. She used e-mail and passed out fliers advertising the project in store parking lots, athletic fields, and shopping centers. Once word spread throughout the community, volunteers--including high-school students and mechanics--started offering their time and money.

While all of this was going on, someone had forwarded an "Operation Javelin" flier to a company in Arizona called MagicDust Television, which produces the show "NASCAR Angels" for SPEED channel. One day another friend of the Bodenschatz family, Roberta Hamilton, was with Donna Nickel when they received a call from someone at the "NASCAR Angels" program with an offer to help their friend. Crew members from the show loaded the car onto a trailer and hauled it away so that the final work on it could be completed.

The "Our Town North Canton" community website reported that Jeff and his Javelin were reunited on June 23, and he told television reporters: "I never thought I'd get it back together, and certainly I never thought it would end up that nice."

Jeff, a North Canton, Ohio, native, was chosen as Grand Marshall for this year's North Canton Jaycee's Fourth of July Parade. "I've participated in those parades with scouts and baseball, but I never dreamed I'd be the Grand Marshall," he told the website writer.

Jeff, obviously touched by this help, told the Beacon Journal: "It's been overwhelming. It's indescribable, and I can't even explain how good it makes you feel that people I barely even know and even people I don't know are going out of their way to help me out. The amount of support, care, and concern has been incredible. You expect that from family and friends but not from people you don't even know and all of those thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated."