FAIRBORN — A United States Marine Corps veteran was honored yesterday when he and his wife were gifted a mortgage-free home in Greene County.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 5:30 p.m., Marine Corporal Jeremy Lipker and his wife Christina were presented the keys to their brand new home in Fairborn.
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“The house gave me a chance to focus on healing. Its been good to me so I hope it’s good for you too,” one of the people at the presentation said.
The mortgage-free home was given to the Lipker’s thanks to a partnership between the Freedom Alliance, U.S. Bank and Fischer Homes.
Tom Kilgannon, the President of Freedom Alliance, says the mission is to support these men and women after their service is complete.
“When veterans come back from war, they are still they’re scarred both physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And they carry the wounds of war that inflict their hearts and their souls,” Kilgannon said. “And that takes a tremendous toll on them. So providing a home like this is not only going to help them financially, but it gives them a place of comfort and security and a sense of belonging in the community.”
Lipker told News Center 7′s Nick Foley that the home far exceeded their expectations.
“We were not expecting any of that. We were. We were concerned about a refrigerator, a washer and dryer. So to walk into this, this is there’s no words,” Lipker said.
But for Lipker, a Dayton native who served two terms in Iraq and Afghanistan, the words that do eventually come to mind are a profound thank you to the groups tha understand dealing with the emotional and physical tolls of service are challenges that often times can’t be overcome alone.
“The big thing weighing on my heart right now, as is my wife, is that, you know, she she has a place that she can call it that really has said it’s been a humbling experience,” Lipker said. “But I never envisioned, you know, having a home or anything like that. That was never a goal when I enlisted by any stretch of the means. And it’s very humbling to be able to be recognized in this manner.”
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