Scrap Happens

06/10/2026

Thank you for sharing 💞

Sometimes God puts people in our path for reasons we don't immediately understand.

This weekend, our family was blessed by Gene and Pam from Scrap Happens. Anyone who knows our youngest son, Mr. T, knows how much he loves crosses and how deeply rooted his faith is. Throughout the car show, he kept going back to a cross at their booth. He admired it all day but kept saying, "I'm sorry, I don't have any money."

What happened next touched our hearts forever.

Gene and Pam gifted Mr. T the very cross he had been admiring. We thought they were simply blessing our son with an incredible act of kindness.

Then on Sunday morning, Pam reached out to us.

We spent time talking, sharing stories, laughing, crying, and connecting in a way that only God can arrange. During our conversation, Pam shared something that touched my heart deeply. She told me that Gene talked all night about the smile on Mr. T's face when he received that cross. She said seeing our son's excitement brought a genuine smile to Gene's face, and that moment meant more to them than words could express.

Pam wrote:

"Sometimes the smallest things create the biggest impact, and that moment will stay with me for a very long time."

Those words reminded me that kindness is never one-sided. What Gene and Pam thought was a gift to our son became a blessing shared between two families.

To Gene and Pam, thank you. Thank you for your kindness, your faith, your generosity, and your friendship. Thank you for reminding us that God's love often shows up through ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

The cross now hangs proudly with Mr. T, but the memory of your kindness will stay in our hearts forever.

Faith brought our paths together, and for that we are incredibly grateful. ❤️✝️

"For we walk by faith, not by sight." — 2 Corinthians 5:7
I think the most powerful part of this story is that it wasn't really about a cross at all. It was about faith, kindness, and two families encouraging each other exactly when they needed it most. ❤️🙏✝️

"Let all that you do be done in love." — 1 Corinthians 16:14 🙏❤️🙏

06/07/2026

What a HOT but great time we had yesterday! ☀️❤️

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth and to those who took home a small piece of art. Your support means so much to us and helps keep this journey going.

Scrap Happens will be posting items that are still available for sale, as well as new creations as they are completed, so be sure to keep an eye on the page. If you see something you're interested in, send us a message!

We are also accepting orders. Please be patient with us as each piece is handcrafted and Gene is still growing his collection one creation at a time. 💞

Thank you again for all the encouragement, support, and kind words. We can't wait to share what's coming next!

Oh, please help our page grow and share with friends and family!

06/06/2026

🚗 Today is the Day! 🚗

Gene is set up at the 3rd Annual Graceview Classic Car Show from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM!

If you're looking for something fun to do, come enjoy the classic cars, live music, food, raffles, and family-friendly activities. While you're there, stop by Gene's table Scrap Happens and check out the unique creations he's been making from discarded and forgotten items.

06/05/2026

🚗 Tomorrow is the Day! 🚗

Tomorrow, Gene will be set up at the 3rd Annual Graceview Classic Car Show from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM!
If you're looking for something fun to do, come enjoy the classic cars, live music, food, raffles, and family-friendly activities. While you're there, stop by Gene's table and check out the unique creations he's been making from discarded and forgotten items.

1689 College Rd, Council Bluffs, IA 51503-4820, United States

See y'all tomorrow!!

06/02/2026

🚗 Join Us This Saturday! 🚗

Gene will be set up as a vendor at the 3rd Annual Graceview Annual Car Show on Saturday, June 6, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM!

Come check out some amazing classic cars, enjoy live music, food, raffles, and family-friendly fun while supporting a great cause benefiting seniors' activities.

Be sure to stop by Gene's table, Scrap Happens and see the latest creations he's made from discarded and forgotten items turned into something new. We'd love to meet everyone who has been following along on this journey!

This will be Gene's second event and another exciting step in his recovery and creative journey. Just a few months ago, many of these moments seemed impossible. Today, they are a testament to his determination, creativity, and the incredible progress he continues to make.

We hope to see you there! ❤️

05/26/2026

We have been asked how long Gene has been building the creations we now showcase on what we call Scrap Happens, and honestly, he has only been making things since mid-April.

But for those new to the story of how all of this came about, it goes back 7 months…

On October 22, 2025, our lives changed in an instant.

I had just left for the post office when my phone rang:
“Pam, Gene’s had an accident, and they’re loading him into the ambulance.”

What followed has been a road none of us could have imagined.

After a fall from over 15 feet, Gene suffered devastating injuries — including a Grade 2 Diffuse Axonal Injury (DAI), a moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury affecting both sides of his brain, skull fractures that caused hearing loss on the right side, 4 brain bleeds, 12 fractures in his spine, a collapsed lung that required a chest tube, multiple broken ribs in both the front and back of his rib cage on the right side, and many other broken bones throughout his body.

He spent his entire initial hospital stay in the Surgical ICU, followed by time in not one, but two rehabilitation facilities as he slowly began the long process of learning how to heal and rebuild. There were setbacks, unknowns, and moments where nothing about the future felt certain.

Doctors never expected the level of recovery he has made in only 7 months. On paper, this is not where we should be right now.

There were so many unknowns in the beginning. So many moments filled with fear, questions, setbacks, and uncertainty about what recovery would even look like. Yet here he is — welding, creating, building, laughing, and finding pieces of himself again through Scrap Happens.

Every creation he makes is more than scrap metal put together. It is proof of just how far he has come.

Yet somehow, through determination, stubbornness, faith, and support from so many people, his recovery has been nothing short of miraculous.

Now, only 7 months later, Scrap Happens was born.

For just about the last month, Gene has been turning other people’s “leftover parts” into incredible creations. Old car parts, tools, silverware, scrap metal — if it can be welded, there’s a good chance he can turn it into something amazing.

What started as part of his recovery has quickly become a passion, a creative outlet, and proof that even after life changes everything, something meaningful can still be built from the pieces left behind.

Please join us at Scrap Happens and follow along as Gene continues both his recovery and this unexpected new journey, creating one-of-a-kind pieces from scrap. And remember to come out to Graceview Annual Car Show June 6th! See you there

05/21/2026

We look forward to seeing everyone June 6th!

Gene is working very hard (as he feels up to it) to bring some new creations out for everyone to enjoy!!

See you soon!!

05/14/2026

Look for Scrap Happens June 6th

05/11/2026

📌 Welcome to Scrap Happens

Hi, I’m Gene, the creator behind Scrap Happens. I make handmade metal art using reclaimed car parts, tools, nuts and bolts, silverware, and other pieces most people would toss aside.

After a major accident in October 2025, returning home, creating became part of my recovery from a TBI and other serious injuries.

Working with scrap helped me slow down, rebuild, and rediscover purpose—one piece at a time.

Each item I make is one‑of‑a‑kind, shaped by resilience, creativity, and a belief that even broken or forgotten things can become something meaningful again.

Thank you for following along and supporting handmade work.
— Gene