Sad to say, veterans who’ve risked it all for their country sometimes encounter serious problems when they return to civilian life. After years in a highly structured environment like the military, returning to the chaos of the “normal” world is sometimes bewildering. Veterans with non-obvious conditions like PTSD and traumatic brain injury can find it nearly impossible to function.
Eddie Browning, a 61 year-old Navy veteran and his wife Cindy, 59, had fallen on hard times. They were living in a fire-damaged camper that was falling apart but they couldn’t afford to repair it, to say nothing of find someplace else to live. Fortunately for them, a project at a nearby school was about to change everything.
Students at the Elm Street Elementary School in nearby Rome, Georgia were building a tiny house that they were then going to give to someone in need. Before long, word of the school’s unique project made the rounds in the tiny house community. The Georgia Tiny House Festival and Oh La La Lavender Farms stepped up and began coordinating an effort to provide all the interior finishings that the school wasn’t able to provide. Thanks to donations from individuals and businesses and work performed by volunteers, the tiny house got an expansion plus electricity, plumbing, and a few appliances. At 248 square feet, the house was indeed tiny, but it was going to have a huge impact on Eddie and Cindy’s lives.
When the tiny house was presented to the Brownings at the Tiny House Festival, they were overwhelmed when they found out that it was schoolkids who’d made it happen. In an interview, Eddie said, “I don’t really have the words to tell you what we feel…” and Cindy added, “Like a dream.”
Check out the video about this amazing act of generosity that’s posted below. The school hopes to be able to make the construction of a tiny house for a deserving family an annual project. Let us know what you think in the comments at Facebook and be sure to like and share!
