It was a chilly morning in Fayetteville on Friday when I joined a host of volunteers to kick off the building of a home for a soldier who was severely injured in Iraq. This “Build Brigade” and the entire project was organized by Homes for Our Troops a national non-profit group that has now completed 48 homes – all through the generous support of sponsors, donors, and volunteers.
The house in Fayetteville will be home to SSG Maurice Craft and his two young daughters. In 2003, Craft lost both his legs when an IED exploded nearby. His new home was designed to be fully accessible and will provide a comfortable and safe home for this brave young man.
By the end of the day, plans were to get the walls up, doors and windows installed and even shingles on the roof! The team swarming the site included other vets, a professional crew from Greensboro, a contingent of soldiers from the 82nd Airborne, and the father of another injured North Carolina serviceman who had received a house through the program. While the air was indeed cold, it was the warm feelings we all had about working on such a worthy project that I’ll most remember.