Three-year-old Logan Strum was visiting his grandparents’ in Morgantown, West Virginia, last summer when a tornado struck the house, creating chaos and deafening noise. After the incident Logan was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder, causing him to experience intense anxiety whenever he hears loud noises.
One of the noises that would send Logan into a panic was the noise made by a garbage truck. But, those fears began to ease when trash collector Randy Fuller reached out to show Logan that trucks, like the one he drives, aren’t so scary after all. “Logan meets him every day with a smile and a hug, so it’s pretty inspirational,” Fuller’s supervisor says.
Logan and Randy have bonded over a shared interest in monster trucks, and this weekend they are in town to enjoy “Monster Jam” at PPG Paints Arena together. “Any time he gets scared or spooked, we get Monster Jam videos,” mom Kelsey Sturm says. “We get Monster Jam toys, and we talk about Monster Jam to kind of help him get over his freak out, or panic.”
On Friday, Logan got a preview of what will be a few days of daredevil entertainment. “Want to see how I climb in?” Logan’s tour guide is J. R. Seasock, who drives “Monster Mutt Rottweiler.”
“This is his dream, to be in front of Monster Jam. He wants to drive one day. So to be out here and walk among these trucks, hang out with me for a little bit, show him my truck. He reached up and petted my car, so hopefully I can take this win tonight for him,” Seasock said.
To read the full story, visit http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2017/02/10/trash-collector-helps-toddler-traumatized-by-tornado/.