Radio personality Boomer Kingston of San Angelo’s KGKL 97.5 FM conducted an on-the-air interview with Ronnie Lyles, project manager for Operation Finally Home, about a home building project about to commence here locally for an Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran. We captured the interview on video, along with a moving presentation at Wednesday evening's San Angelo rodeo performance.
Thursday morning at 11 a.m. (Feb 26) at 5809 Barrington Court in The Bluffs subdivision, the Home Builders Association of San Angelo, in partnership with Operation Finally Home, will break ground on a new custom home for a medically retired veteran.
U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Chris Campbell, his wife Stephanie and their two boys have chosen to live in San Angelo since Campbell’s retirement in 2012.
Below: A video of an interview with Operation Finally Home Project Manager Ronnie Lyles about the San Angelo project. It includes shots of the presentation at Wednesday night's rodeo.
Campbell joined the military in September 1994 and became a crew chief on the F-16 Fighting Falcon at Luke AFB. He cross-trained into security forces some time later to be closer to the action, he said.
He was involved in several tours of security duty around West Virginia immediately following the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 as well as a deployment to Balad Air Base, Iraq, from November 2004 to July 2005.
During Campbell’s Iraq deployment, he was injured by a rocket attack at his base on June 11, 2005.
As a result of the blast, he sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Campbell also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), frequent migraines, insomnia, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease/asthma and hearing loss. He medically retired from the military in 2012 with numerous awards including a Purple Heart, USAF Meritorious Unit Award Ribbon and a National Defense Service Medal.
Campbell and his family previously lived in San Angelo during his time working for federal civil service at Goodfellow Air Force Base. The family is eager to move back for San Angelo’s warm weather, leading local medical facilities that will aid in his recovery and its family-friendly communities with great schools perfect for raising their boys.
Operation Finally Home was established in 2005 as a nonpartisan/nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. In 2015, the organization is celebrating 10 years of providing custom-built, mortgage-free homes to America’s military heroes and the widows of the fallen who have sacrificed so much to defend our freedom and values.
Operation Finally Home partners with corporate sponsors, builder associations, builders, developers, individual contributors, and volunteers to help America’s military heroes and their families transition to the home front by addressing one of their most pressing needs—a home to call their own.
This is the second time since 2012 that the HBA of San Angelo has partnered with Operation Finally Home to build a new home for a veteran.
The HBA of San Angelo is a 501(C) 6 non-profit professional trade organization comprised of builders and associate members who subscribe to the highest business and ethical practices and who are committed to fostering an environment conducive to help the growth of businesses within the industry. As an organization, the HBASA says they believe in the American dream of home ownership and are dedicated to making this dream a reality.
Lyles said that he is currently shepherding 38 projects in his territory, the western United States. In San Angelo, AB Builders will be the general contractors for this project.
To find out more about Operation Finally Home, visit OperationFinallyHome.org.
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