JUNO BEACH, Fla. — Derek and Annette George's son, John Paul, was born with half a heart. He wasn't supposed to live but did until the age of 23.
"I always said he was limited on Earth, and in heaven he has no limits," said Annette George.
John Paul didn't survive a heart transplant.
"I think he could sense that he wasn't going to make it," said Derek George.
John Paul had a vision for making juice.
"He would sit at the table, and he would taste them to make sure the taste was right," said Derek George.
His parents, who live in Juno Beach, said at first they didn't really understand.
"He would always say 'Dad, you have no idea how this is going to help people. People are going to love this,'" said Derek George.
But now they do.
"They taste it and their eyes light up, kids' eyes light up, and I look at them and say, 'Geez, that's John Paul,'" he said.
John Paul had the grand idea for the company, which is called Giving Juice.
"He was like so excited, and that's why we went in for the transplant because he wanted to live to do this. He was so pumped up," said Derek George.
His parents said they are working through their grief by pushing his vision forward. One of his quotes is on the juice box. It says "I can't change who I am, but I can change the world as I am."
His parents have gotten the juice in gourmet markets across Palm Beach County.
"It makes me feel so good inside even though I'm dying inside," said Derek George.
"We know how much John Paul wanted this to work, and how much he loved the taste, so this is how we are working through our grief with our giving," his parents said.
The goal is to be in schools and hospitals nationwide -- all giving back in the name of John Paul.
To find out more about the juice, visit their website at: https://www.givingjuice.org/#!
