Operation FINALLY HOME is ready to build a home for wounded veteran. Will you help?
by Angelique Gammon
In January, local builders will break ground on a very special custom home in the King Oaks subdivision that, when finished, will be the mortgage-free residence of a wounded veteran from the war on terror. Even though the selected veteran won’t be announced until late November, other King Oaks residents are already eager to welcome the veteran to the neighborhood, says Kristi Robinson, marketing director for King Oaks.
“Our other homeowners are very excited,” says Robinson of King Oaks’ decision to partner with Operation Finally Home and local builders in the Bryan/College Station Home Builders Association. “They are glad to be part of the project and really ready to embrace the veteran’s family.”
This project is really a community-wide effort through the non-profit organization Operation FINALLY HOME, explains Daniel E. Vargas, TSgt, USAF (retired) and executive director of Operation FINALLY HOME. Established in 2005 by CNN’s 2010 Top 10 Hero of the Year Dan Wallrath, Operation Finally Home provided 49 mortgage-free homes to wounded veterans and widows of servicemen across the country. This will be the first home built by the organization in the Bryan/College Station area.
Both Vargas and Robinson stress that it will take a community wide effort with donations of everything it takes to build a home – from doors to door handles, paint to landscaping – to complete the project. That includes some volunteer unskilled labor.
First, Operation FINALLY HOME works with homebuilders and developers to commit to building a home. Once the commitment is in place, the program works hand-in-hand with building suppliers and donors to get much-needed material and manpower donated to drive the cost of the home down, according to Robinson.
On other projects, churches and groups have volunteered to do cleanup days during construction or even install the landscaping in a day with the help of a professional landscaper, says Vargas. For the Bryan/College Station veteran, three local builders have stepped up to build the veteran's new home including Pitcock & Croix Custom Homes, Weber Custom Homes and builder Quinn Williams.
Now it's the community’s turn to step up, says Robinson. To complete the home in King Oaks, volunteers, fundraising, monetary donations and donated materials and supplies are all needed. Individuals, companies or other organizations that would like to support this "modern day barn raising," can sign up at www.Aggielandveteran.com.
Veterans from the war on terror represent less than 1 percent of the population and have protected us all for over 10 years, says Vargas. “Our greatest gift is our all volunteer service,” he says. Helping a severely wounded veteran achieve a mortgage-free home is an important way to show their sacrifice is appreciated.
Visit www.Aggielandveteran.com for information on donating to the King Oaks Aggieland Veteran home. Visit www.OperationFinallyHome.org for more information on the continuing effort underway in 11 states to provide homes for wounded heroes.
