1-800-PACK-RAT is proud to support the Homes For Our Troops (HFOT) organization by donating containers used during the building of their homes. HFOT is a non-profit organization that builds and donates specially adapted custom homes for severely injured post-9/11 Veterans, to enable them to rebuild their lives. These homes are specially designed to help these injured Veterans with the injuries they sustained while serving their country overseas. This month, we want to highlight Marine Corporal John Smith.
Cpl Smith was severely injured during his second deployment to Iraq, losing his right leg and vision in his left eye during the first Battle of Fallujah that occurred on April 12, 2004. Cpl Smith was returning with the 2nd Platoon, Echo Company, 2-1 Marines after conducting a sweep of the city when an enemy mortar round in the center of the unit’s defense, hitting Cpl Smith. Cpl Smith went into shock and became disoriented, while his unit’s corpsmen acted quickly to evacuate him to safety. The last words Cpl Smith remembers hearing before passing out were his fellow Marines saying, “We got you, Marine. You’re safe now.”
Cpl Smith would go on to spend the next four weeks in a coma. He was initially sent to Landstuhl, Germany where his right leg would require amputation. After Germany, Cpl Smith was sent back to the United States, and was treated at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, as well as Walter Reed Medical Center. Cpl Smith describes his recovery as “a slow start with a miracle result.” When he awoke from his coma, he was told he wouldn’t be able to use his hands again and would have to use a wheelchair for the rest of his life. With faith and support from friends, Cpl Smith says he was able to walk, write, and slowly “regain a little bit of normalcy.”
Cpl Smith is now medically retired and keeps busy with many creative projects like mixing and mastering music, art, photography and film. He is currently working on an associate’s degree in music engineering as the first step towards a bachelor’s degree. Cpl Smith choose to have his home built in Southern California, despite being from the east coast, stating that the Golden State is the only place that feels like home.
John is extremely grateful to the donors, sponsors and supporters who provided him with a home adapted to his injuries. “The world is full of empty promises, but to know that a group of people are willing to stand in the crosshairs for us when we can no longer do so, brings a warmth to my heart I haven’t felt in a longtime,” he says. “A lot of us come back damaged goods; most write us off because the war isn’t on TV any more, giving PTSD and other ailments room to grow and prosper. The love you show to us Vets is the cure, and I can feel the love, as I’m sure many other before me have.”
1-800-PACK-RAT donated portable storage containers to help with on-site storage. The all-steel, weatherproof, secure containers were able to keep building supplies, appliances and other donations from other companies safe while the home was built, saving both time and money.
Cpl John Smith is one of the many Veterans that 1-800-PACK-RAT has assisted with container donations. If you would like to learn more about Cpl Smith, check out his inspirational story here. If you would like to learn more about how you can donate or assist HFOT in their efforts wait no longer and check it out today.