'Mission complete': After years of home damages, Leland veteran receives renovation

Jamey Cross, Wilmington StarNews
·2 min read
Freddie Smith, a U.S. Army veteran, speaks at a "Mission Complete Ceremony" outside his Leland home on Monday, March 6, 2023. Home damages tracing back to Hurricane Florence were recently completed, thanks to efforts from local and state organizations.
Freddie Smith, a U.S. Army veteran, speaks at a "Mission Complete Ceremony" outside his Leland home on Monday, March 6, 2023. Home damages tracing back to Hurricane Florence were recently completed, thanks to efforts from local and state organizations.

For 14 months, Freddie Smith slept on an air mattress in his Leland home.

There was no heat, no air conditioning, no floors. Smith walked through his home on boards of plywood that had been placed on top of the floor joists.

Smith's home was first damaged in 2018 by Hurricane Florence. Then, in July 2021, the home's hot water heater pipe burst, sending water through a wall in his living room and flooding the home. The Army veteran said water was standing in the home two to three inches deep.

When Steve Muir with the American Legion Post 543 in Southport walked into Smith's home in February of last year, he wasn't convinced it would ever be fully repaired.

"We have done dozens of projects," Muir said. "Nothing on this scale."

Today, after years of repairs, his home is unrecognizable with new walls, cabinets, countertops, vanities and floors.

"This has been a long, long process and I thank everybody for being there," said Smith during a "Mission Complete Ceremony" on Monday.

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The renovations to his home were completed thanks to a joint effort by Purple Heart Homes, Lowe’s Home Improvement, American Legion Post 543, American Legion Post 68 and the Military Officers Association of America. Purple Heart Homes is a national veterans housing charity based in Statesville.

Freddie Smith, a U.S. Army veteran, was officially welcomed home after damages from Hurricane Florence and a pipe burst in his Leland home were repaired.
Freddie Smith, a U.S. Army veteran, was officially welcomed home after damages from Hurricane Florence and a pipe burst in his Leland home were repaired.

"It's not what you know, it's who you know sometimes," Smith said. "And that's how this whole project came about: one person knew somebody, one organization knew another organization, and then everybody else came on board. I'm very appreciative."

Smith served in the U.S. Army for seven years, including active duty in Operation Desert Storm, the 1991 attack by U.S. forces on Iraq's Air Force during the Gulf War.

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Paul Cockerham, chief development officer for Purple Heart Homes, said the organization has helped some 1,056 veterans in 46 states by completing various home-improvement projects, "from simple grab bars in the shower to wheelchair ramps, widened doorways, ADA-compliant bathrooms, HVAC systems, roofing" all at no cost to the veteran.

Lowe's Home Improvement employs more than 26,000 veterans, according to Bill Ferimer, a store manager at one of the chain's three New Hanover County locations. Ferimer is one of them.

"This is a great opportunity to give back to the community," Ferimer said. "Warriors like [Smith] make our country great."

Jamey Cross covers Brunswick County for the StarNews. Reach her at jbcross@gannett.com or message her on Twitter @jameybcross.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Desert Storm veteran from Leland receives long-awaited home renovation