Cole's Journey
Steve Burggraf and his team at Burggraf's Ace Hardware in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, give back to their community every year by helping kids. One of their Burggraf's Ace All-Star children, Cole Johns, grew up to become one of their star employees.
The team first met Cole at the Caring Fore Kids Golf Tournament; a charity event sponsored by Burggraf's Ace with proceeds benefiting local pediatric patients. Cole was undergoing treatment at the time. He was born severely premature, with a malformation in his brain stem which caused ongoing medical needs. Members of his rehab services team recommended Cole to be a Caring Fore Kids All-Star. At the tournament, Cole and his fellow pediatric All-Stars hand out cards with a short bio to help the golfers get to know them.
"He used to be really shy about going up to the golfers and now he's just out there with a stack of cards taking pictures with every group," said Linda, Cole's Mother.
"The goal with the money we earn every year is to spend it on pediatric care," said Steve Burggraf, Burggraf's Ace Hardware Owner. "It makes it all worth it."
Cole continued to be involved with Burggraf's Ace while he was in school. Through the school's Work Experience program, Cole was able to get a part-time job at the store, and everyone loved having him around. When Cole graduated in 2022, he was able to continue his job at Burggraf's Ace.
"Cole came on as an employee and he gets to clock in now. He's got all the Ace gear which he is super excited about," said Annalise James, Burggraf's Ace Employee.
"His hugs, his attitude, and his hard work. That's what it's all about," said Kelly Kirwin, Burggraf's Ace Operations. "He's a good leader. He's the example for all of us. Cole is special to our store because he knows where everything is."
Cole and Linda are so happy that Burggraf's brought Cole on as an employee because the team and the store are such a major part of Cole's life.
"Cole is just part of our family. You know, Ace is the helpful place," said Steve. "And we're helping Cole, and Cole's helping us in a lot of ways that he doesn't even know he's helping us."
