"Two weeks ago I received a random inquiry via our website from Levi's older sister (Shanon Burke), inviting me to join them for this car show," says Joe Fiduccia, owner of the world's only full-scale AOE replica of Optimus Prime. "I immediately responded to her with an interest in doing whatever I could to help him smile."

Shanon soon placed Joe in touch with one of the main event coordinators and family friend, Angie Purdy.

"Angie was instrumental in pulling this off," says Joe. "It was clear she had a passion for this event, a love for this family, and a strong desire to do whatever she could to get Prime and I down there for Levi."

Angie and Joe spent hours brainstorming about different ways he could make this visit between Prime and Levi extra special.

Fiduccia says: "I don't usually offer VIP 1:1 experiences anymore unless under special circumstances. But I definitely considered this an exception to that rule. So we came up with a plan to surprise Levi at this house with Optimus Prime, make him feel like a king for 90 minutes, and then head over to the car show together."

He goes on to say: '"there are fees associated with getting Prime anywhere. And the absolute last thing I wanted to do is take any funding away from Levi's family. I insisted to Angie that I would only agree to do this if the funding came from a third party individual and did not affect any of the family's finances or fundraising efforts. Yet within in a matter of hours, Angie received enough donations to cover our costs."

So a date was set, and Fiduccia began his drive in Optimus ... almost 500 miles one-way ... strictly to meet with Levi and offer him the experience of a lifetime. But their voyage would soon take a difficult turn.

"In speaking with the family and Angie, Levi's health was declining rapidly," says Joe. "So I left earlier than anticipated in the hopes I could drive straight to his home before it was too late."

But with less than 2 hours to go until they reached Danville, Joe got the disappointing news that Levi had passed away.

"That was extremely difficult," he said. "Not just for the family and community, but for me too. I did not know the family personally, but I knew enough about Levi's story to feel a special bond with him. So when I saw the text message come through, I actually had to pull over in Optimus just to process those emotions. Something like that has never happened before, and I wasn't sure what to do next."

With the car show still planned, and unclear what the family wanted to do, Joe ultimately decided to continue his journey to Danville in the hopes he could still do something ... anything ... for the Burke family. He arrived there on Friday evening, March 17, 2023. At which point he cleaned Optimus until close to midnight.

The following morning, Joe spoke with Angie as well as another family member, Olivia Wyatt Payne. Apparently the family still wanted to meet Optimus. So the decision was made to move forward with the planned VIP visit. But instead of doing it with Levi, Joe would do it with Levi's family.

"Levi's life revolved around the Transformers," says Joe. "So I wanted to honor that love, and decided to coordinate a visit with Optimus at their residence. Just as I would have done for Levi."

"About 20 family members and friends were waiting when I pulled up. I introduced myself and explained that I am going to do with them what I was going to do with Levi."

Joe spent the next 45 minutes with the family playing a few games, offering special photo ops, explaining a bit about the story behind Optimus, and ultimately offering to treat everyone to some ice cream at a nearby eatery.

"I was fighting the overwhelming emotion to break down in tears," says Joe. "At times I couldn't even get a sentence out. It is rare for that to happen when I do these things with Optimus."

With Levi's sister and his mom (Whitney) in Optimus, Joe drove them into Danville, followed by Levi's family and close friends. They ended up at Hopper's Poppers and enjoyed some ice cream, compliments of Levi's Papa (despite Joe's insistence that it was his treat).

Once finished, they walked outside where Joe handed the Matrix of Leadership to Whitney. He then made Optimus Prime speak a few words of encouragement. The family and children all received several items to keep, and Joe finished by surprising them all with a visit from Prime's friends - Bumblebee and Ironhide. Both of whom dropped everything on Friday to be there for the family.

After spending about 90 minutes total with the vehicles from Team Prime, Joe led the family a mile away into the car show that was being held in Levi's memory.

"As soon as I turned the corner into the parking lot, I was blown away," says Joe. "I could not believe how many people were there for an event that was only planned 10 days prior. There had to be hundreds of cars and possibly a thousand people. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before."

Levi's mom Whitney and his older sister were in Optimus Prime. Some of the other family members were in Ironhide and Bumblebee. As the team entered the parking lot, the entire crowd gathered at the center, surrounding the three vehicles.

Whitney and her daughter stepped down while horns were blaring as a show of support. The rest of the family gathered alongside Optimus while the crowd applauded their strength. Then everyone immediately began walking up to embrace the family and offer their condolences.

A formal prayer was offered a bit later, and the car show eventually ended just before dusk.

Team Prime departed Danville that evening with heavy hearts, and yet a truly soul-fulfilling experience.

"This was one of the most moving and emotional experiences I have ever been part of," says Joe. "Complete strangers from hours away rallied around this young boy and his family. There was no divide, no hidden agendas. No politics, no racism. It was the purest display of human unity I've seen in a long time."

As of the date this article was published, well over $10,000 had been raised to help the family with their medical costs. That number does not include any of the donations they received from the car show.

"This trip took a turn I did not see coming," says Joe. "I didn't know how to respond to it. I was in town, and I wanted to do something for this family. But I also did not want to cast a fictional shadow or fake pretense over his passing. I simply wanted to compliment Levi by honoring his love for the Transformers, while bringing joy and a positive experience for the family at a time of deep sorrow."

"I do believe we succeeded in that secondary mission."

He goes on to say: "I was able to send Levi a video a few days prior to coming. So he did know we existed. But even though we were unable to meet Levi in person, I believe he was there with us the entire time. Looking down with a smile screaming 'this is so cool. I can't believe you got the Transformers to visit me!' That alone is comforting to realize."

Fiduccia says he also could not have made the voyage without the additional help from Patrick and Jennifer from J&J Truck Sales, Inc. in Chatham, VA.

"They offered me a safe haven to store Optimus Prime and clean him as needed. They were extremely hospitable and went the extra mile to meet me during non-business hours. Without a place to do this, we wouldn't have been able to make the journey. They stepped up in a big way, and I really appreciate their willingness to help me pull this off for Levi's family."

Team Prime would also like to thank Angie, Olivia, Shanon (friend and family), Toni, Brian (Ironhide and Bee), Ania, Ryan (Joe's family) ... and everyone who came together for such a great cause.

"This was the ultimate showing of community support. They have already considered the possibility of making the event an annual car show, and asked if I'd be interested. As if there is any doubt, I absolutely welcome the opportunity to visit this region and family again."

If you would like to offer support or condolences to Levi's family, his mom Whitney can be reached on Facebook.

If you would like to donate towards the ongoing mission of Team Prime, please use the button below.

PLEASE NOTE: we do NOT usually offer 1:1 experiences like these unless under special circumstances, or unless a non-profit and/or major funding sponsor is involved.