Habitat for Humanity of Orange County & Home Depot come together to help veteran homeowner

LAKE FOREST, Calif. - July 16, 2014 - PRLog -- On July 17, the helping hands of Habitat for Humanity of Orange County volunteers and Home Depot sales associates will gather at the home of veteran homeowners in Lake Forest to work on home repairs as part of the Veterans Build repair program.

Veterans Build repair program combines major financial and volunteer support from The Home Depot Foundation with Habitat for Humanity of Orange County’s homebuilding expertise to repair the homes of low-income veterans. Through the Veterans Build repair program and the partnership with The Home Depot Foundation, Habitat for Humanity of Orange County has been able to help almost 30 veteran homeowners in Orange County who have served in WWII, the Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.

The most recent homeowners to participate in the program are Rolando and Bernice. Veteran Rolando is a nuclear engineer that served as a lieutenant in the US Navy for 5 years. When Ronaldo and his wife Bernice purchased their 50 year old home, they immediately began extensive repairs to make the house safe for their family. However, when Bernice was diagnosed with breast cancer, they were forced to prematurely end the work they were trying to accomplish on their home.

Rolando has put extensive amounts of time and money into his property, but the work is so overwhelming and so extensive, that it over-took their home and code enforcement got involved. Ronaldo and Bernice live in their home with their two young children and Bernice’s grandmother, and while their family’s safety is their top priority, the work needed on their home is too much for this family to take on alone.

The Habitat for Humanity of Orange County and The Home Depot Foundation will revitalize Ronaldo and Bernice’s home by removing weeds, working on landscaping, and installing two types of fencing.

The veteran repair will be from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 24231 Ankerton Dr. in Lake Forest.