On October 25, 2014 Stark Street Lawn and Garden delivered a Cub Cadet RZT zero-turn riding mower to Sgt. Joshua Sweeney, a marine veteran severely injured during his service in Afghanistan who is receiving a specially-adapted, mortgage-free home near Hillsboro, OR through the non-profit Homes for Our Troops (HFOT) organization.

While serving in Afghanistan in October 2009, Sweeney was injured by an improvised explosive device. His legs had to be amputated above the knee and he suffered some damage to his arm as well. Sweeney is a purple heart recipient, as well as a gold-medal sled hockey player for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team.

HFOT is a nationwide organization that provides homes for the most severely injured Veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of these Veterans are multiple amputees, paraplegic, quadriplegic or suffered severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).  These homes restore some of the freedom and independence our Veterans sacrificed defending ours, and enable them to focus on their family, recovery, and rebuilding their lives.

HFOT broke ground on the home for Sgt. Sweeney and his wife April this past spring. Upon hearing of the family’s need for lawn care equipment, Cub Cadet distributor Power Equipment Systems and local Cub Cadet dealer Stark Street Lawn and Garden, jumped at the chance to get involved.

Stark Street Lawn and Garden and Power Equipment Systems hand-delivering the Cub Cadet RZT zero turn riding mower to the building site as volunteers worked throughout the day to install a new lawn and landscaping features.

For more information or to get involved with Homes for Our Troops, visit hfotusa.org.