LAND O’LAKES – The Tunnel to Towers Let Us Do Good Village has welcomed two new heroes to its growing community.
Navy Fireman Brenda Arnaud and Industry Borough Police Officer Scott Morrison are among the 11 heroes who have moved into the village this year. Nearly 30 families call the village home.
The village will eventually feature nearly 100 homes gifted to catastrophically injured veterans, first responders and Gold Star and Fallen First Responder families.
“Every smart home Tunnel to Towers delivers represents a new beginning,” said Frank Siller, chairman and CEO of Tunnel to Towers. “For Brenda and Scott, this means greater independence, peace of mind and the opportunity to focus on healing instead of the obstacles their injuries have created.”
Brenda Arnaud
Brenda Arnaud enlisted in the Navy on May 5, 2013, inspired by her husband, a Marine Corps veteran. She worked on pre-commissioning ships, getting them ready to deploy around the world.
During one of these assignments, she suffered a devastating fall that resulted in several serious injuries, including a spinal cord injury, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome and frozen shoulder, which later spread. She developed hand contractures and drop foot that progressed to osteonecrosis.
After years of surgery, she decided to amputate her leg nearly 10 years after the original injury. Dealing with her injury while living in a two-story home in Texas made everyday tasks difficult.
“My kid’s bedrooms were upstairs, and I couldn’t always get upstairs,” Arnaud said. “I had to force myself to wear my prosthetic to get around my house, which kept me from healing properly.”
She is looking forward to her new smart home in the Let Us Do Good Village.
“I loved the fact that everyone there understands what you are going through because they have gone through the same thing,” Arnaud said.
Her Tunnel to Towers smart home will give her greater mobility and safety. The financial relief has allowed Arnaud and her husband to focus more fully on her recovery and their children.
Scott A. Morrison
Scott Morrison is a Gulf War veteran who served in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm in the 1990s, working as a helicopter crew chief in Germany.
He returned home and started a career in law enforcement working as a K-9 handler and patrolman. During an encounter with a suspect, he broke his ankle, an injury that he continued to worsen over the years on the job. Eventually, the injury and pain forced him to retire. He endured multiple surgeries to repair the damage to his legs and back. His injuries have left him with limited mobility. He often relies on a scooter to get around.
Struggling physically and financially to make ends meet, Morrison admits he was in a low place when Tunnel to Towers came into his life.
“I was a broken shell of a man, I was fighting, I never gave up or backed down…but everything Tunnel to Towers has done just blows me away,” Morrison said. “I can’t find the words of what it means and how it feels. It’s been a blessing.”
Now he’s moving from Pennsylvania to Florida and looking forward to his next chapter in the Let Us Do Good Village.
“It’s a community where I’ll know the guy next to me has my back, as I will have his back,” Morrison said. “That’s something I haven’t felt since I was in the service.”
Want to help?
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, when FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller gave his life in the line of duty. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation continues to honor his legacy by providing mortgage-free homes to injured veterans and first responders nationwide.
The foundation has delivered more than 1,700 mortgage-free homes and committed over $1 billion to its programs.
On the web: T2T.org
