A patriotic crowd gathered on the driveway as Justin Callahan stepped into his recently constructed home alongside his wife and children Saturday in Florida.
The veteran, who lost his leg in Afghanistan, was cheered on by loved ones and those with the nonprofit group that assisted in constructing the house in Jupiter Farms, according to the Palm Beach Post.
Callahan wears a prosthetic leg and also tries to get around in a wheelchair, therefore, the special home will help him do just that.
It was built with over 40 adaptations “designed to restore freedom and independence” for the veteran.
The home is a gift, mortgage-free, thanks to Homes for Our Troops, whose mission is to “build and donate specially adapted custom homes nationwide for severely injured post-9/11 veterans, to enable them to rebuild their lives,” its website read.
Callahan applied for the house a few years ago and eventually received approval. However, construction was delayed due to similar projects and the pandemic.
“I didn’t feel like I deserved it,” Callahan recalled of the application process. “That kind of stuff doesn’t happen to people like me.”
Callahan served his country in the Army for four years after joining when he was 18-years-old in 2000.
In early 2004, he was doing clearance operations at Bagram Airfield when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off. His left leg was eventually amputated.
In 2017, Homes for Our Troops shared a video of Callahan detailing his story:
Now, he is a social worker at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center, and even though some days are harder for him to walk on his prosthetic, the house offers much-needed freedom.
“This is going to take such a big burden off my back, my family’s back,” Callahan explained, adding, “We’ll be able to relax more freely now and I’ll be able to help out more around the house because I’m not stressing out my body.”
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