Oh snap! Tools handy surprise for teen
Mitch Zavallo, 19, holds a t-shirt, the last gift he was expecting before a surprise delivery of thousands of dollars worth of tools.
Tim Wentz, left, shows Mitch Zavallo the “Epic” toolbox Snap-On provided for the 19-year-old cancer survivor.
Even food was appropriately themed for Mitch Zavallo’s Make-A-Wish Foundation surprise party Saturday.
Mitch Zavallo’s birthday presents on Jan. 11, 2015, were a cancer diagnosis and emergency chemotherapy.
The 19-year-old survivor of stage four lymphoma who has since been in remission for six months was provided more enjoyable gifts Saturday: a dream garage setup of tools in what Make-A-Wish Foundation organizers said was one of the most generous donations ever coordinated.
Zavallo, of South Strabane Township, thought he was receiving a couple of hand tools and some mechanics’ swag, but Snap-On representatives surprised the car nut with toolboxes packed with power drills, wrenches and even a microwave and a promise to deliver a hydraulic car lift.
“We had to come and take a look at the garage first, or else we would have had that in the trucks, too. So, we’ll custom make a lift for you now,” said Snap-On representative Tim Wentz, “and the Epic toolbox you have here – it’s factory direct. We had to get a truck to do a 21-hour sprint because the first one we had ordered wasn’t coming in time.”
The toolbox didn’t betray its name. Buried throughout the compartments were t-shirts, gloves, helmets and all sorts of accessories – and seven hats.
“You need one for every day of the week when you’re a mechanic,” Wentz quipped.
Zavallo, who spent half a year laid up in bed, bald from intensive chemotherapy, showed no signs of wear or worry as he was barely containing his excitement to get back to working on cars.
“I still don’t believe it all. I thought I was going to get a welder and a shirt. … I want to do something small and immediate to get a feel for all these tools. I think I’ll put a little tractor motor on a go-cart and go from there,” the 2015 Trinity High School graduate said.
Future projects will likely include classic cars, like the ones Zavallo chopped up in the past.
“I thought I was going to be working all my life just to get a quality toolbox like this, let alone the dozens of tools that came with it. It’s just unbelievable,” Zavallo said.
A gift of tools is a departure from typical gifts of trips and experiences that Make-a-Wish Foundation usually provides. That’s why it was all the more surreal for Snap-On driver Jeff Dalrymple, 30, of Morgantown, W.Va., who delivers to Washington. Dalrymple was a wish recipient when he was 12 and was diagnosed and began treatment for cystic fibrosis.
“I was able to go to Universal Studios and hit the beach for a couple of days in Orlando and race some BMX bikes while I was there,” Dalrymple said, “and it’s very rewarding and humbling to be a part of what Mitch was wishing for. … In all honesty, I never thought I could be a part of what was so special and uplifting for me, to do that for somebody else.”
Zavallo said he’ll continue to provide “free” mechanical work since undergoing treatment. According to his mother, Holly, and other family members, Zavallo has helped an average of two stranded motorists a week.
“I always carry tools in my vehicle, and you see the stopped vehicles, it’s usually something simple. It’s better to help them than have them dealing with a towing company,” Zavallo said, “but the ultimate goal is to get back to it. I want to help people get the cars to look and sound like what I get out of mine. I get ’em and I make ’em loud. I like loud.”