With oversized scissors in hand, retired Sgt. Adam Lee cut slowly through the ruby red ribbon tied to his new home. Lee then took his first steps inside of his new home since the framework was assembled.
“It’s more than a blessing just to know that there are people out there that have the hearts and the capabilities to do something like this,” Lee said while inside his new home. “This is so much above and beyond what I expected after seeing just the structure itself.”
The ribbon-cutting and dedication of Lee's new home was Wednesday. Operation Finally Home, a nonprofit organization, in partnership with local contractor Michael Dilworth, Alabama Power and Southern Living provided Lee and his family with the mortgage-free home.
“We couldn’t have aligned Adam with a better community and a better builder," said Russell Carroll, executive director of Operation Finally Home. "This has just been such a great project all the way throughout."
Operation Finally Home began in 2005, and it has since worked on over 250 home projects.
Dan Wallrath, founder of Operation Finally Home, was a custom home builder in Texas for over 30 years before he began the organization. After working with his local community to remodel the house of a wounded Marine at no cost, Wallrath decided to found Operation Finally Home.
“We are not able to do what we do without the support of builders and the local community,” Carroll said.
As for Dilworth, this was the first project he has worked on with Operation Finally Home.
He first heard about Operation Finally Home when he went to a homebuilders conference and watched a Southern Living presentation about the organization. Not long after that presentation, Dilworth got in contact with the organization, Dilworth said.
“What operation finally home has put together has been just awesome,” Dilworth said. “I can’t really say it was a sacrifice. It was something we really enjoyed doing.”
During his time in the military, Lee served as a dog handler in Afghanistan. Lee served his first tour in Afghanistan in 2007. Four months before his return to the U.S. he suffered a fall from a vehicle and injured his back.
Lee recovered from his back injury and went on to serve another tour in Afghanistan in 2009. While on his second tour, Lee and his dog, Baco, were in a helicopter crash.
Lee and Baco both survived the crash, but Lee injured his back again in the crash. Lee went into medical retirement in 2012.
During the ceremony, Lee also received a plaque of appreciation from the local American Legion chapter.
“For an older veteran to show appreciation to me really means a lot because of the things they’ve had to go through for us to be where we are now,” Lee said. “So to have the older generation thanking me, is just a very humbling experience.”
Alabama Power equipped Lee's home with a tankless water heater and an electric vehicle charger.
“This is something you always read about in the newspaper or see on TV, but it’s not something you think would ever happen to you,” Lee said. “I don’t feel like I deserve a fraction of this. I did what I did because I wanted to, and I felt compelled to do it. I didn’t give as much as a lot of my brethren did, but I’m so thankful that I’m still sitting here today.”
Lee first learned about his new Auburn home during halftime at the Auburn versus Ole Miss football game Oct. 7, 2017. At the game, Lee and his family were presented with a rendering of the future home.
“From the first time that we came down here and just walked through the parks and groceries stores, everybody that we passed had a smile on their face and greeted us,” Lee said. “[Auburn] is just the most friendly and welcoming community that I’ve ever been in. Even though it’s a growing city, it has a small-town feel.”
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