Home is meant to be a place of comfort — a spot to relax and forget about the troubles of the world. Unfortunately, not everyone has the luxury of a stable routine.
Timothy Read, a Marine Corps veteran who lost his leg while serving in Afghanistan, currently lives in a home not properly equipped to accommodate his medical needs. His kitchen cabinets and counters are raised too high for use in his wheelchair, and his shower is not easily accessible.
A childhood dream turned real-life after leaving for boot camp the summer of his high school graduation. Read always had aspirations to join the United States Marine Corps. Deployed to Afghanistan in 2010, he stepped on an improvised explosive device (IED) while on patrol. After losing his left leg above the knee, Read underwent intense surgeries and rehabilitation therapies at Walter Reed Medical Center, Balboas Navy Medical Hospital and the VA in Tampa, where he was fitted for a prosthetic leg. It’s also where he met his wife, Anh, who worked in the prosthetics department.
After receiving a house donated by the national nonprofit Homes for Our Troops — designed with more than 40 special adaptations, including widened doorways, pull-down shelves and a wheel-chair-accessible roll-in shower — Read will be able to live with much more ease. The home will also be mortgage free, letting Read and his wife Anh start the family they’ve always envisioned. “Just being in a home, raising our family together — that will be the best thing to happen,” Read says.
