Breakfast With Brooke

CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) ― Some say Big Bill Ficke's heart is bigger than his pizza pie .or his native Long Island. After his 34 years in Colorado, Ficke's accent is still hard to miss, unlike his unassuming restaurant.

Big Bill's New York Pizza is the kind of place you might not notice unless a good friend told you about it. Plastered wall-to-wall with memorabilia and celebrity photos (Clint Hurdle and Denzel Washington are fans), the Centennial pizzeria is extremely popular. But it's not just the gooey New York slices that bring in customers. The draw is even bigger than the affable, six-feet, six-inch tall former Nuggets assistant coach Ficke. Loyal customers know that Big Bill's represents the generosity of our community.

That part of the story started the morning of September 11, 2001.

"Woke up that morning, saw a plane go into the World Trade Center, came over here, and the restaurant was like a mecca for every New Yorker in this area. They'd be coming in with stories of, my brother, my cousin, my good friend was on the 40th floor," said Ficke.

Ficke decided to set aside the day to give away hundreds of pizzas, in exchange for donations for the families.

"We had to do something, so a week later, we did the first 9/11, and we raised $33,000 and we thought that was unbelievable for a one day thing in a little restaurant like this," Ficke said. "A very good friend of mine, who was in Squad 41, told me they lost six people and that they were setting up a foundation for their families, so a week later, we did a second one."

People came from all over Colorado and Wyoming to raise a total of $65,000 for 9/11 victims. The next year, Ficke decided, there was more work to be done.

"I just said to myself, why should we end this thing? Why not turn this negative day into a positive day? So we decided to call it a Day of Giving," said Ficke.

Every year since then, the Day of Giving at Big Bill's has packed the restaurant and raised tens of thousands of dollars for those in need in Colorado - one year, splitting the sum with a basketball team that lost everything in Katrina. Last year, diners donated $48,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Ficke lost his wife to lymphoma in 2007.

"This year will be the first fundraiser for the Joanne B. Ficke Foundation, which we started this month," said Ficke. "If a cancer patient needs a bed and they don't have the money for it, they'll get it from here."

Last year, on the cusp of the recession, one man left a check for $5,000. Another donated a thousand dollars for two slices. Big Bill's employees donate their salary and tips for the day, too.

"While things are tough, they still remember somebody else," said Ficke. "I hope that every 9/11, when people come in here, they understand that's what you're doing, is you're helping someone. You're helping someone that needs help. And what greater satisfaction is there in life than that?"

Big Bill's New York Pizza will host its ninth Day of Giving Friday, September 11th, opening at 10:00 AM. The fundraising will continue until Bill runs out of dough (last year, the restaurant ran through about 750 pounds). Diners order food from the menu, in exchange for a donation. Ficke said, bring your wallet and your patience - the restaurant typically gets very crowded with people eager to raise money.

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