In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new voice came over the loud speaker asking for a carry out at register Four.
Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to answer the call. As he approached the check-out stand a distant smile caught his eye, the new check-out girl was beautiful. She seemed a little older than he, (maybe 26, and he was only 22) but her smile was irresistible and he fell in love instantly.
Later that day, after his shift was over, he waited by the punch clock hoping to see her just one more time before calling it a day. She came into the break room, smiled softly at him, and he fell speechless. She took her card and punched out and smiled once more before turning to leave. He waited until she was out of site and rushed to the shelf of time cards, he found hers…BRENDA.
He walked out of the store and spotted Brenda walking home. That would be his opportunity tomorrow. The next day, he waited outside as she left the supermarket, and offered her a ride home. He looked harmless enough, and she accepted. When he dropped her off, he asked if maybe he could see her again, outside of work. She graciously declined simply stating that it would be impossible.
He pressed and she explained she had two children and she couldn’t afford a baby-sitter, so he offered to pay for the baby-sitter. Reluctantly she accepted his offer for a date for the following Saturday. That Saturday night he arrived at her door only to have her tell him that she was unable to go with him. The baby-sitter had called and canceled. To which Kurtis simply said, “Well, lets take the kids with us.”
She tried to explain that taking the children was not an option, but again not taking no for an answer, he pressed. Finally, Brenda brought him inside to meet her children. She had an older daughter who was just as cute as a bug, Kurtis thought. Then Brenda brought out her son, in a wheelchair. He was born a paraplegic with Down syndrome.
Kurtis asked Brenda, “I still don’t understand why the kids can’t come with us?” Brenda was amazed. Most men would run away from a woman with two kids, especially if one had disabilities – just like her first husband and father of her children had done. Kurtis was not ordinary – – – he had a different mindset.
That evening Kurtis and Brenda loaded up the kids, went to dinner and the movies. When her son needed anything Kurtis would take care of him. When he needed to use the restroom, he picked him up out of his wheelchair, took him and brought him back. The kids loved Kurtis. At the end of the evening, Brenda knew this was the man she was going to marry and spend the rest of her life with.
A year later, they were married and Kurtis adopted both of her children. Since then they have added two more children to their loving home.
So what happened to Kurtis the stock boy and Brenda the check-out girl? Well, Mr. & Mrs. Kurt Warner now lives in Arizona.
Overlooked by the NFL draft, cut in training camp by the Green Bay Packers, and thwarted by a venomous spider bite when trying out for the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner’s path to victory hasn’t been an easy one. Yet despite setbacks, Warner persevered–whether stocking supermarket shelves or leading teams to the Super Bowl.
I just wanted to share this with you, because I feel that we all have the ability to achieve greatness, yet so many of us are not willing to take the extra step, go the extra mile, try new things, or even stick our neck out there towards unknown territory. Kurt Warner pursued his wife and career in a way that fashions a hero of perseverance.
True story!