COTTAGE GROVE – Ever since he died by suicide more than two years ago, Levi Foster left behind a loving family and a lifelong group of friends struggling to make sense of what happened. As a U.S. Marine, he had served nine months in Afghanistan, returning home with some shrapnel in his hip.
Still, his suicide was a complete and total shock to everyone.
Now, those who were closest to him can take comfort in knowing that Levi didn’t die in vain. His legacy will live on, thanks to this past weekend’s Levi Foster Rod & Classic Car Show in Cottage Grove. The event raised more than $7,500 for the VA – which will all go toward helping families affected by PTSD and suicide.
“I heard about the Foster family from some of our vendors, and we put this all together in about 3½ months,” said Dan Sperry, the Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram general manager who coordinated the weekend event, which was held adjacent to his car lot.
Cottage Grove CJDR general manager Dan Sperry talks to the crowd as Levi Foster’s father, Leonard Foster, looks on Saturday during the Levi Foster Rod & Classic Car Show. KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
“We’re going to make this an annual event – around this time of year. There was a car show in Salem this weekend so we’ll do a better job of looking at the calendar next time. We had a good turnout this weekend, but I think we can get three times as many people next year.”
As longtime Veneta residents, the Fosters appreciated the great outdoors.
KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
“We went fishing a lot together. My dad handed it down to me and I shared it with Levi,” said Leonard Foster, Levi’s father. “He liked to go deer hunting, but that wasn’t my thing.”
“He liked to go fishing and take his dog Cartman for a walk by the river,” said Stephona Hellberg-Foster, who was Levi’s wife. “And he loved Mustangs. He had a green Mustang – that was the car he had when we got together.”
That was quite a story in itself.
Stephona was 20 years old and homeless, staying in a friend’s garage in Springfield when she met Levi. A year later, in 2012, their only child, Blake, was born.
They were a happy family. Sure, like any couple, they had their spats. They were going through some issues just before Levi, 33, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on June 15, 2022.
Stephona Hellberg-Foster, Levi’s wife. KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
“I always thought he was happy. But he took his own life … a day before my birthday,” Stephona said. “We were kind of separated at the time. We weren’t fighting, but we were trying to figure out who Blake needed to go with. So I’m not sure if that had anything to do with it. Blake has gone through a lot and is very upset and every once in a while he talks about it.
“But we’re all getting there. It does get easier day by day but it’s still hard day by day.”
Levi’s sister, Shelby, says she recognized some of the PTSD signs. But suicide? That never entered her mind.
“He was quiet,” Shelby said. “Sometimes he would kind of shut down and push people away. He didn’t really want to talk about anything.”
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The Foster family took a break Sunday to hand out prizes from the five car classes and … drumroll please! … the 41 gift baskets that were donated and assembled by K&C Creations.
It took about two days for Kendra Kidder and Christy Arnold to put these beautiful, bountiful baskets together.
“We made 30 baskets originally in seven hours from our vendors and the community,” Kidder said. “But people kept on donating. A lot of our vendors love to donate and they love to donate for a cause.”
KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
Sperry shared with the audience that a veteran from Creswell named Richard had driven down to the event to share his story of having PTSD for 40 years. He’s now on the right meds and living a happy life.
Sperry could relate. His own brother, after 25 years in the service, is now a counselor and helping others.
“My brother is now doing great,” Sperry said. “He’s very well in charge of his life now, we’ve witnessed it on the other side, saw how it impacted our family – his wife and his kids, and now his grandkids. He turned something negative into something very positive.”
Sperry received nothing but positive feedback as Saturday’s festivities wound down.
“We’ve been looking to tie ourselves together with some type of grassroots marketing, because our philosophy in sales is it’s all about relationships,” Sperry said, “and as a dealership with customers it’s all about building relationships, and there’s no better group to do that with than a group like the VA and then helping an important cause.”
Leonard Foster went home Saturday with a sense of fulfillment.
“It’s a good feeling in my heart that Levi’s legend lives on,” his dad said. “His life got cut short, but his legacy lives on.”
Leonard Foster, Levi’s father. KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
Levi’s wife, Shannon, and son, Blake. KALLIE HANSEL-TENNES / THE CHRONICLE
