Idaho Falls volunteers asked to landscape adapted home for injured Army veteran
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Laura Guido, Idaho Capital Sun
IDAHO FALLS (Idaho Capital Sun) — Idaho Falls volunteers will gather Saturday morning to help landscape a new home for an injured veteran.
Homes For Our Troops is a national nonprofit that builds and donates specially adapted homes for severely injured post-9/11 veterans, like Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Byers, according to a press release. The nonprofit built the accessible home for Byers, and the Volunteer Day on Saturday will focus on landscaping the new home.
When: Volunteers check in at 9:30 a.m., and landscaping lasts from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Aug. 2
Where: 1615 Helix Blvd. in Idaho Falls
RSVP: Online here.
Byers, serving on his third deployment as an infantryman, stepped on an improvised explosive device, IED, on July 7, 2012, in Mushan, Afghanistan, and lost both his legs below the knees, according to the nonprofit’s website. The blast also resulted in a traumatic brain injury and tinnitus. Byers had to quarantine for a week in Texas upon his arrival because of bacteria he acquired when injured overseas, the website said.
Byers is now medically retired and lives in Idaho with his five children.
The new home was meant to support Byers independence, as a single-level house with an open floor plan.
Saturday’s Volunteer Day is part of the nonprofit’s “mission to not only provide homes — but to engage the community in honoring and uplifting those who have sacrificed for our country,” the release said.
“Seeing volunteers come out and work side by side to support one of our nation’s finest is incredibly moving,” Homes For Our Troops President/CEOTom Landwermeyer said in the release. “It will take the entire community to enable our Veterans to fully rebuild their, and their families’ lives.”
More information about the nonprofit can be found at hfotusa.org.