Turlock has grown a lot over the past several years. There are new businesses opening every month and new housing developments are underway on the north and east sides of town. There is even an Amazon fulfillment center here now. But Turlock is still a small town at heart; Juan Pulido is proof of that.

Pulido has been a Turlock mail carrier for over 10 years and has become an integral part of the community for many residents and business owners. He brought laughter and caring along with his daily mail deliveries, according to more than one regular customer.

So, when those customers heard that Pulido is now battling Stage 4 cancer, they reached out to other community members to help him and his family during this difficult time.

Sheri Harrington, manager of a local mobile home park, has created a GoFundMe page to raise money for Pulido and his family.

“The night we found out, I stayed up late praying and wishing I could do something to help this incredible man. I realized that over the years, Juan has likely touched the lives of countless people in our town the exact same way he has touched ours,” Harrington posted on the GoFundMe page.

She said that moving to Turlock from the Bay Area, she realized just how much Turlock really is a small community and how everybody supports each other. She hopes any money raised will help lift the financial weight off the family’s shoulders while Juan is battling cancer.

While Harrington is raising funds online, downtown eatery LaMo asked locals to indulge in their famous wedding chicken to help raise funds for Pulido. The proceeds from every order of wedding chicken that was ordered at LaMo last Wednesday went to Pulido’s family. LaMo owner Gloria Smallwood said she was pleasantly surprised by the response.

The Main Street restaurant prepared over 100 orders of wedding chicken that night and raised $2,500 for Pulido.

“We had to turn it off because we couldn’t keep up with the outpouring of love,” she said.

When Smallwood heard that her longtime mailman and friend was battling cancer, it spoke to her heart. Her daughter, Brityn Butrick, died in January from cancer.

“In her memory, anything that we can to help…,” Smallwood added.

Along with the check for $2,500, Smallwood also gave Pulido information on the Brityn Cares program established by Legacy Health Endowment. The program offers medical expense relief for local families.

This is not the first time the community has rallied around Pulido.

In July 2021, Pulido had a tragic accident which cost him his right eye. He was working on his outdoor barbecue island when the blade on his grinder broke and sliced into his right eyeball. The doctors were unable to save his sight in that eye.

While he was off work for the surgery, Pulido said that he was inundated with get well wishes. From calls and texts to letters he received from customers who sought out his home address, Pulido said he didn’t realize the impact he had doing his day-to-day job.

To contribute to the GoFundMe page benefiting Pulido, visit: https://bit.ly/46sijpf