Building Homes for Heroes helps
Robison family purchase dream home

Steve Robison’s US Army Stryker Brigade, stationed in Alaska, was deployed to Iraq in August 2005. A week prior to Steven’s deployment, his wife Kristen gave birth to a baby girl. Jordan was a week old when he left for Iraq. Steven was in Iraq for just one month when he suffered severe injuries.

During a standard patrol through a dangerous neighborhood, Steven came to an intersection and was fired upon from a rooftop. Steven’s left leg was blown off below the knee. He was also hit in the right calf and lost most of the feeling in his right leg. He credits his unit for treating him immediately and saving his life. Steven was still conscious when he arrived at the hospital on the Forward Operating Base (FOB). He asked the doctor about his legs, but knew he had lost his left leg. He recalls seeing his leg hanging off of his body, attached only by a tendons and strands of muscle. The doctor at the FOB hospital told him that he wouldn't be able to tell if Steven’s right leg could be saved until surgery.

Steven went into surgery not knowing if he would wake up with one leg or none. Steven lost 90 percent of his right calf, suffered nerve damage in his right leg, tendonitis in both knees and one ankle. He also suffers from bursitis in his right hip. Steven returned to the Unites States a month later. The baby was just a little over a month old. Kristen was left to take care of a newborn and Steven. He states that he owes his quick recovery to his wife.

The Robison family lives in a 1400 sq. ft. home. It is very small and nearly impossible for Steven to get around, especially when it’s too painful for him to use his prosthesis. One of the toughest hurdles is dealing with extreme pain. He frequently gets sores which cause him to stay off his prosthesis for a week or two. He can not move around the home in his wheelchair.

Thanks to some generosity and the family’s own funds, the Robison’s are having a home built in San Antonio, which is due to be completed in August of 2008. The home is very necessary for Steven’s general needs and comfort. However, the Robison’s needed help. They faced financial problems in regard to the building of the home.

Building Homes for Heroes led the effort to make the family’s dream of owning this home come true. The organization, along with assistance from The Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes, provided the family with a gift of $30,000 to ease the financial burden. This enabled the Robison’s to put a more substantial payment down at closing and made mortgage payments affordable. The family will move into the home immediately.