FRANKFORT, Ill. — Pizza Pete is a Frankfort staple known for serving up a good pie. But this story isn’t about the pizza as much as the young woman behind the counter.
Danielle Skopick’s parents own the restaurant but she has been the face out front for years, doing everything her parents were told would never happen.
She was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 2 – and then her parents were handed a prognosis they’d never forget
“We were told the chances of her having a meaningful life were very slim. Like less than 5% and that as a nurse that struck me,” John Skopick said.
The years passed with Danielle beating every odd and while their family continued to grow, they never forgot the blessing.
“Definitely my parents are an inspiration,” she said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today. From Day One they have pushed me to be a good person and independent and I can’t thank them enough for that.”
Buying Pizza Pete didn’t just give Danielle the head job, but gave her family a way to pay forward their own good fortune.
“Our goal is to give back as much as we can to the community cause. It’s kind of a cheesy thing,” John Skopick said. “I think it’s important to give back when we’ve been blessed with so much personally.”
They call it Pizza for a Purpose and donate all their sales profits every Tuesday back to the community through the VFW, local police and fire departments, the Knights of Columbus, the Sheliah Doyle Foundation and more.
All that pizza adds up to serious amounts of donated dough.
“I have people ask all the time, ‘Why do you guys do what you do?’” Danielle Skopick said. “I know what it’s like to see other people who don’t have that. And because we have the ability to give back why wouldn’t we?”
Lisa Skopick is still working as a nurse and John Skopick is a State Farm Agent. But it’s at the pizza place where the family’s heart lies. And gratitude for the daughter and sister out front is served up through pizza.
Just this last week, Pizza Pete served up 3300 slices with all the proceeds going to charity.
