On Friday morning, 225 Home Depot employees, as part of The Home Depot Foundation’s national Operation Surprise campaign, gave Tucker’s American Legion Post #207 a much-needed push in its efforts to recover from a 2019 fire that destroyed the structure.
Home Depot workers created a handicapped-accessible community garden and outdoor gathering spaces, assembled outdoor furniture sets, built a fire pit, installed fencing, and made various landscaping improvements.
And then there was the surprise: Home Depot Foundation’s Executive Director Erin Izen presented the post with a new game patio and a $25,000 donation.
“I’m stunned. I’m overwhelmed and I an never stop going to stop smiling,” said
Tucker resident and former Marine Scott Brady whose “Save the Seven” committee have been working to rebuild the post and transform it into not only a meeting place but a community resource for veterans and their families.
“I can’t believe they are giving more after what they did today,” Brady said. “This will give us the money to continue on as we finish out the building and get closer to completing our vision.”
Home Depot Chief Executive Officer Ted Decker said the American Legion’s mission aligns perfectly with Home Depot’s goal to improve the homes and lives of U.S. veterans.
“It was a pretty perfect combination with our core values in wanting to partner with our local communities to give back,” Decker said.
During the day, Home Depot volunteers installed 683 plants and constructed 47 pieces of furniture using 1,000 pieces of cut lumber.
Brady said the infusion of materials and labor has “provided us the oxygen to keep going.”
The post is still seeking about $200,000 to finish interior construction in order to become operational.
Post 207 Adjutant Christopher Morley called the effort to rebuild the post “a phoenix project.”
“We literally came from the ashes and now we are focused on opening our doors in Q-2 of 2025,” Morley said. “We are looking for multiple sources of funding so we can make this a reality.”
The rebuilding of the post was almost scrapped after a 2019 fire that gutted the 70-year-old building. The rebuilding process was plagued with disaster, including the refusal of the post’s insurance company to pay out and the resultant supply chain issues and labor shortages brought about by Covid.
The former commander, Anthony Mathis, was “in the foxhole, pretty much by himself and ready to throw in the towel,” Brady said. “At that time, we only had about four members.”
Mathis, a fellow Marine, was in discussions to sell the land and walk away. But after a phone conversation with Brady, Mathis said, “we made a relationship and shared a vision.”
“It was just me and one other guy trying to bring this thing back and I had a full-time job and a family, and it was starting to affect me mentally,” Mathis said. “I always say that the vision is bigger than the visionary, and I found the visionary in Scott, who brought the team together to restart the project.”
Morley said the post now has 70 members, evenly split between veterans from the World War II/Vietnam/Korean War era, and younger members from Persian Gulf/Lebanon/Afghanistan conflicts.
“I believe both of these groups will help form a true community center to connect our veterans,” Morley said.
Those wanting to help further with fundraising can join the Veteran’s Day Run/Walk, which will kick off Nov. 9 at 8 a.m.
The Home Depot Foundation, the nonprofit arm of The Home Depot, since 2011, has invested more than $500 million in veteran causes and improved more than 60,000 veteran homes and facilities.
