HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Thursday morning started just like any other for Huntsville man Trent Griffin. However, his involvement in the community gained him a very public thank you.
Griffin is more than a NASA physicist at Marshall Space Flight Center and is part of a team that’s developing hardware for long-term use in space, he spends his free time providing bicycles to children in the Huntsville community.
Last year, Griffin saw a boy riding a bicycle in his neighborhood with no front tire. He wanted to help, so he bought an old bike from a thrift store, restored it and gave it to the boy. It didn’t take long for word to spread through the neighborhood and for more and more kids to bring bikes to Griffin for repairs.
Griffin then decided to use this bicycle venture to positively influence these kids. He created a contract that the kids and their parents must sign before he gives the bikes away, promising good study habits and listening to their parents in exchange for their bike.
“When I went to go talk to a school at an awards ceremony, turns out one of my bike kids got the most improved behavior,” said Griffin.
So when “Good Morning America” asked viewers to nominate someone who had gone above and beyond to help others, it is no surprise that Griffin was nominated by his sister, Toni Eldridge.
TJ Holmes from Good Morning America surprised Griffin at his house Thursday morning, and Griffin was then blindfolded and taken to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville. He was shown an aerial art installation made for him, which was around a thousand of his family, friends and community members who created the outline of a bicycle that could be seen from the sky.
That wasn’t the only surprise, though. Astronaut Scott Kelly appeared live from the International Space Station with a special message for Griffin. Kelly told Griffin that although he was in space, Griffin was the true hero.
“A lot of people look up to astronauts because we fly in space, but we really, really rely on the people on the ground, the people that work in the control center, the engineers, the technicians, people like yourself that help us do our job up here and make our lives safer and easier,” Kelly said.
“But what I really look up to are people that do things when they don’t expect any recognition. And I think that’s what you do by donating your time and by getting these bikes for under privileged kids and getting them on the right track, and getting them to be in a position someday where they can be successful adults. You’re the real role model here.”
Kelly also told Griffin that he would be receiving 50 brand new bicycles that he could donate to children in his community who needed them.
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