Veteran Proud of Home Again after Repairs by Rebuilding Together and Lockheed Martin

Over the past four years, Rebuilding Together Atlanta has proudly worked with Lockheed Martin to make the homes of veterans and their families safer and more accessible, and improve community facilities that serve them. In that time, we’ve eliminated dozens of hazards in eight homes at no cost to veterans like Samantha.

Just weeks following the 9/11 attacks, Samantha enlisted in the U.S. Army to defend our country. She was stationed in Germany before deploying to Iraq in 2003. There, she served in an intense role in a combat environment. The next year, Samantha returned stateside and served in the Army Reserves until her honorable discharge in 2010.

In the years that followed, she faced new battles that eventually led to homelessness. But she fought her way back with determination, reclaiming her life one step at a time. Today, Samantha is a certified peer specialist, helping fellow veterans navigate mental health and addiction. And, recently, she started a nonprofit to support female veterans. 

At home in Marietta, Samantha is the primary caregiver in a multigenerational household, including her daughters and family members living with disabilities. Despite her strength and perseverance, the home required critical repairs to ensure it remains a safe and healthy environment for her family. 

She reached out to Rebuilding Together, a movement of neighbors helping neighbors, to make the home safer. Through a national partnership with Lockheed Martin, Rebuilding Together affiliates like ours provide essential home repairs to the veteran community. More than 30 local Lockheed Martin employees volunteered their time and talents to provide improvements to Samantha’s home at no cost to her. 

The team of volunteers and contractors made many improvements. They fixed plumbing, installed bathroom grab bars, removed old flooring to prepare for new flooring, and made ceiling repairs. Outside, the contractor replaced the roof and fixed the rear door, while volunteers eliminated trip hazards in the yard, improved the landscaping, repaired front steps, stained a fence, and installed a new garden for the family to enjoy.

With these improvements, the home is now safer and healthier for Samantha and her family. “Today, I feel proud of my home again,” Samantha told Rebuilding Together Atlanta. “What you’ve done has made a lasting impact on my family, and we won’t forget it.”

Photos courtesy of Lockheed Martin