The National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) has provided flooring for its 89th and 90th homes in support of the Gary Sinise Foundation R.I.S.E. program (Restoring Independence Supporting Empowerment), which builds mortgage-free, custom, specially adapted smart homes for severely wounded veterans and first responders.
A home dedication for retired U.S. Army Cpt. Leslie Nicole Smith took place recently in Nashville, with flooring donated by NWFA member Middle Tennessee Lumber. Additionally, a home dedication for U.S. Marine Corps. Lance Cpl. John “J.T.” Doody was recently held in Parrish, Fla. Flooring was donated by NWFA member Derr Flooring.
As a public affairs officer Cpt. Smith worked with high-level officials, dignitaries, celebrities and high-ranking military officers. She was less than a year into her deployment when she suddenly began to feel excruciating pain in her left leg. An ultrasound revealed a growing blood clot that had broken off into thousands more, spreading throughout her body to vital organs, resulting in the loss of her left leg and vision.
“The clots were believed to have been caused by Cpt. Smith’s exposure to chemical agents and gasses emitted from mass grave sites,” said Stephanie Owen, NWFA president and CEO. “They were so severe that doctors at Walter Reed Medical Center initiated the paperwork that gave her 24 hours to live, but Cpt. Smith was determined to fight. Despite losing her leg and her eyesight, she now works to help other service members and their families navigate their new normal.”
Lance Cpl. Doody was deployed to Fallujah in Iraq. In 2008, he and his fellow Marines found themselves engaged in a vicious gun battle. A sniper shot him multiple times in his right thigh, calf and shin. A final bullet traveled up his leg and tore through flesh and nerves, leaving a bullet hole the size of a fist. After recovering from his wounds, he started law school, but his injuries returned with a vengeance less than a year later.
“Unbeknownst to his doctors, a bacterial infection was growing around the lining of Lance Cpl. Doody’s heart,” Owen noted. “Sadly, a bacterial mass broke loose and traveled to his brain, triggering a series of strokes and causing him to slip into a coma. The results left him with severe brain injuries, quadriplegia and cognitive blindness.”
In addition to the 90 homes already completed, NWFA is working with members to source wood flooring for 14 additional R.I.S.E. homes in various stages of planning and construction. Currently, 164 NWFA member companies have donated product, logistics and installation services in locations throughout the U.S., with a total value of more than $7 million. A list of all NWFA R.I.S.E. participating companies can be found at http://www.nwfa.org/giving-back.aspx.
