‘I Was At Rock Bottom': Rochester Woman Gives Life-Changing Gift to Man Trying to Turn His Life Around

This Story Behind a Rochester Woman Gifting a Van To a Stranger is Truly Something Special

Sometimes the internet surprises you in the best possible way.

A simple post in a Rochester community Facebook group recently turned into a powerful reminder that kindness still exists and that sometimes strangers really do step up when someone needs help.

A young man named Jon Hielscher posted in the Spotted in Rochester Facebook group, asking if anyone had an old vehicle they were willing to part with. He had just landed a new job, but had one major problem: he didn’t have a way to get there.

He admitted in the post that it was probably a long shot.

But the post didn’t go unnoticed. One person who saw it decided she could help. Her name is Sue Bauman.

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I reached out to both Sue and Jon to learn how this incredible act of kindness came together and what it meant to each of them. Their stories made the moment even more powerful.

A Rochester business owner saw the post and stepped in

Sue is a Rochester-area small business owner. When she came across Jon’s post, she immediately reached out.

“I told him I’d have one [a vehicle] in about a month,” she said.

Sue owns a small family transportation company called Peace to Your Puzzle, which transports autistic children throughout southeast Minnesota.

Because the job involves a lot of driving, their vans rack up serious mileage. When one reaches the end of its time in service, Sue usually passes it along to family members or someone who could use it.

This time, she decided to give it to Jon.

“We put a lot of miles on our vehicles,” she explained. “This one had about 287,000 miles on it.”

Helping families is part of her mission

Sue started Peace to Your Puzzle nearly a decade ago and runs it as a small, family-style operation focused on consistency and trust.

The company specializes in transporting autistic children, something Sue says requires familiar faces and dependable routines for both the kids and their parents.

“You’re getting the same driver every day,” she said. “The kids know them, the parents know them. It’s peace of mind for the families.”

She intentionally keeps the company small and only hires people she personally knows.

“We’ve been doing this for almost 10 years,” she said. “It’s such an honor to watch these kids grow.”

A young man trying to turn his life around

For Jon, the situation was simple.

He wanted to work. He just needed a way to get there.

“So, I kind of went down a bad path in my teenage years,” he said. “I finally turned 20 this last February, and I just wanted to get back up on my feet, start working a job.”

He had recently landed a job with All Above Roofing in Rochester, but he lives almost 20 minutes away in Eyota, making transportation a major challenge.

“The only issue was I didn’t have transportation,” Jon said. “So I just took my shot, seeing if anyone wanted to help someone.”

He made the post at the end of February and hoped for the best. Jon says an angel must have been watching over him when Sue responded the way she did.

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Weeks later, Sue kept her promise

Jon said the two stayed in touch on Facebook Messenger for a couple of weeks while Sue waited to replace one of her business vehicles.

This morning, he got the call.

“She was like, ‘Hey, we’re picking up our new vehicle. Is there a time we can set up where you can come get the van?'”

There was just one problem: Jon didn’t have a ride, so Sue had one of her drivers pick him up and bring him to the DMV in south Rochester.

“I don’t think he believed it was real,” Sue said. “He just kept saying, ‘This is such a blessing.’”

Jon said she transferred the title and paid for it, too. "I told her she didn’t have to, but she was being very, very nice about everything.”

A simple request: Pay it forward

Sue said she believes strongly in giving back and helping others whenever she can.

“I’m a Christian,” she said. “I believe when you give, it comes back tenfold. God has always had my back.”

She says she tries to give back whenever she can, including helping families around Christmas each year.

“I don’t do it for recognition,” she said. “I do it because God sees it.”

For Jon, she had just one request. “When you’re done with it someday, pay it forward to someone else.”

Jon says he plans to do exactly that; in fact, he says the lesson stuck with him almost immediately.

Already paying the kindness forward

After getting the vehicle, a friend called asking for help cutting firewood he uses to heat his house.

Instead of celebrating his new wheels, Jon grabbed the keys and went to help.

“I went out there, and we cut wood all day long,” he said. “Basically, we got him set for heat for like the next month.”

A moment neither of them expected

Jon says Sue’s generosity came at a time when he felt like he was at his lowest point. “I was pretty much at rock bottom,” he said.

Now, he says the simple act of kindness gave him something he desperately needed: A chance.

“She’s a very wonderful person,” Jon said. “She’s out there blessing people and making their lives better.”

And if Sue ever needs help in the future, he says he’ll be there.

“She has my phone number, and she should always know that I will always be an extra hand,” he said. “I won’t ask for any money. I won’t ask for anything.”

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A reminder that kindness still exists

In a world that often feels chaotic and divided, stories like this hit differently.

A young man asked for help, and a stranger answered; a simple act of generosity turned into a life-changing moment.

Sue hopes Jon will remember the moment and someday do the same for someone else.

Jon says he already plans to continue paying it forward whenever he can.