Welcoming heroes home

By Emma Peterson. 

Learn how one organization is making sure that veterans are welcomed back to homes that are designed for their needs. 

Homes For Our Troops is an incredible nonprofit that focuses on building and donating accessible and adapted homes for disabled, post-9/11 veterans. This CoffeeCast, sponsored by ABC Supply, highlights the work they do through the stories of veterans Steven Curry and Luke Murphy.  

Steven served for five years in the U.S. Army after joining post-high school. His father before him served in the Navy and his first deployment was in Afghanistan. He shared, “I went to basic down in Georgia, and then within a year, I was in Afghanistan. I was there for a year, and then went to Iraq for my second deployment. I was in Iraq for about four months before I got hit by my second IED. That second one ended up taking my left foot off, and became an amputee, a below knee amputee. That was back in November 2006.” 

Luke comes from a family of veterans, which inspired him to join at 17. Within a year of joining, September 11, 2001, happened. He explained what this taught him, sharing, “That really solidified why I was there. Then, I went to Iraq in 2003 with the 101sr Airborne division in the infantry. I led a small team of three guys, and I learned a lot about war that first year. I learned that I really had had enough, and I felt like I did my portion and was trying to get out of the military at the end of my enlistment.” However, he was given a stop loss and sent back to Iraq. It was during that deployment that he was hit by an IED. He shared, “We ran over an anti-tank mine on Christmas Day. This was the third vehicle that had been shot out from under us. This particular blast was different because it knocked the air out of me. It blew my leg off immediately, blew my left leg in half.” 

Both Steven and Luke came home and ended up at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. It was there that they each learned about Homes For Our Troops. Luke explained, “They started building homes before anybody else in this space. There were lots of charities that would take a guy out fishing, hunting, they'll take him on a PTSD retreat, or a couples retreat or they'll do this or that. And all of that is amazing, and they absolutely sometimes save lives, but a home, oh, a home is so much bigger. A home is like being shown thank you every single day.”  

Steven added, “I was kind of stuck. I was trapped in my own house. My leg was hurting, I couldn't use a wheelchair. Getting up and down the stairs was a chore, and our house just wasn't suited for somebody like me to live safely.” And then his wife found out about Homes For Our Troops. They immediately told him they were going to help and by May 2016, Steven and his family moved into a new home. Shortly after that, Steven joined Home For Our Troops to help pay it forward.  

Read the transcript, Listen to the episode or Watch the full webinar for more about Homes For Our Troops and how it helps heroes like Steven and Luke.