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MEANSVILLE - Tears, laughter, the will to endure despite overwhelming circumstances, and a deep respect for our disabled veterans were the resounding themes of Saturday’s celebration at Sgt. Buddy May’s home. Purple Heart Homes, Inc. and Wells Fargo hosted a Mission Accomplished Ceremony at the Mays’ home on Saturday, December 3, 2011 in which Pike County and surrounding communities came out to say thank you to Buddy and his family for his service and sacrifice as well as celebrating the completion of modifications that have been made to his home to make it more accessible and energy efficient.
Over the past several weeks, volunteers from Purple Heart Homes, Inc. and Wells Fargo have given countless hours to help renovate Sgt. Buddy Mays’ home. Volunteers renovated two bathrooms, painted the entire house, helped build a back deck with a wheelchair lift, put in energy efficient appliances, weather-proofed the attic, worked with landscaping, and moved the solvent system.
The two biggest items were making his home more accessible by upgrading his bathroom to make it accessible for his wheelchair and adding the lift from the back deck. The difference in his bathroom is like a difference between night and day. Before, Buddy could hardly maneuver into the bathroom with his wheelchair. Now, the entire floor is open and he could pop wheelies in there if he wanted! The lift on the back deck makes it a breeze for Buddy to join the family around the pool and participate in back yard activities when he had to go out of the front door down the ramp there and go completely around the house before this upgrade.
Buddy told his story of injury and rehabilitation with his wife and children and one of the two other survivors from this 2005 incident in Iraq by his side. He also said that they lost two really good guys that day. Buddy went on to praise his wife, Summer, for supporting him throughout this ordeal. He called her his rock and said, “If it weren’t for the wives and the kids, it would be a lot bigger struggle on us [injured soldiers]… The wives and children don’t get near the recognition that they need.”
Buddy told how he had undergone numerous surgeries in Germany and here in the states at Walter Reed and Tampa hospitals. The struggle really began for him when he was released on December 17, 2005-the day before one of his daughter’s birthdays. His family lived with his sister to begin with and then in a trailer that they tried to adapt to their needs. His family has been living in their current home for five years and had been slowly adapting the house to make it a little more accessible a little at a time, but said that his “honey-do” list is now non-existent thanks to Wells Fargo and Purple Heart Homes. “It won’t take me ten years to do this on my own-it’s done,” he said.
Buddy thanked Wells Fargo, Purple Heart Homes, and Justin King for their time. “Their self-less service was overwhelming.” He said that the changes to his bathroom are exceptional and have made life so much easier for him now. He described the outside lift as amazing. These changes have given him more time to spend with his family. The home efficiency lowered his electric bill in just one month from $600 to $700 to $283. That is a savings of at least $4,800 per year.
There was a sea of red Wells Fargo shirts standing together on one side of the group and friends, family, and community support standing on the other as the ABC Network News Team with Bob Woodruff was filming this event for a Nightline Prime Time Special that will air on December 10th at 8 p.m. on ABC PRIOR TO the debate. This special will be called "Bringing America Back" and will feature Purple Heart Homes Co-founders Dale Beatty and John Gallina along with a segment about Saturday's Mission Accomplished Ceremony for Buddy Mays.
To learn more about Wells Fargo and its volunteer work in the community, click here.
Purple Heart Homes, Inc. is owned and operated by veterans Dale Beatty and John Gallina, who were both wounded in combat in Iraq in 2004. They founded this non-profit organization in 2008 to help service connected disabled veterans. Click here to make a donation or learn more about Purple Heart Homes, Inc.
Click here to read the first article about Sgt. Buddy Mays, Purple Heart Homes, and Wells Fargo. It has been a privilege to cover this groundbreaking event of the renovation of the first home in Georgia for Purple Heart Homes.
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Buddy surrounded by Wells Fargo volunteers.
Buddy with members from the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association.
This was sitting on the counter in their refurbished kitchen.
This is the lift off of the new deck.
Buddy Mays with members of Cub Scout Pack 107.
Buddy Mays with members from the American Legion Pike Post #197 and representatives from the District and State American Legion.
