Army Veteran and family receives new, mortgage-free home

By Joe Hennessy

Click here for updates on this story

    KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KCTV) — Operation Homefront, based out of San Antonio, Texas, partnered with U.S. Bank to gift Oscar Perez III and his family a home as part of its Permanent Veterans Program.

“I still don’t understand why we were picked,” he said.

He’s lived at more than a dozen addresses since returning, often with extended family. Perez III enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2003 after 9/11 and then deployed to Kuwait in 2004. A severe knee injury while serving as a machine gunner forced him to medically evacuate. Six surgeries later and a year of physical therapy, he medically retired.

The Perez family will receive financial counseling and homeowner education while living mortgage-free in their newly built home for about two years through the program. They will pay off debt and build savings during this time. This newly built home will make the long-held dream of returning to Missouri, near Kristi’s family, a reality.

“Oh my gosh, it just feels like it’s an open slate.”

He said he coaches baseball and would like to get more involved with the sport in a new area with the extra cash they’ll have. They also are working towards creating a home gym in the basement.

“To open my own place and have training for multiple sports not just baseball. I’ve always had friends that told me I need to do it and said they’ll invest but I just never felt like I had the opportunity to it or the ability so it’s amazing,” he said about what could be in the future for them now.

They will receive the deed to the home, mortgage-free when they successfully complete the program.

U.S. Bank supports veterans and military family members through Proud to Serve, an employee-led business resource group. Through Proud to Serve, each new veteran is personally welcomed by leaders who are also veterans. Employees are also encouraged to use internal social networking forums to connect, network, and share stories. The bank employs more than 2,000 veterans, including National Guard and Reserve members.

This is the third home that U.S. Bank will donate to Operation Homefront’s PHV program.

Operation Homefront is a national nonprofit organization whose programs and services provide relief and recurring family support throughout the year to help military families overcome short-term difficulties, so they don’t become long-term hardships. Since 2012, Operation Homefront has graduated more than 680 families from the PHV program, providing over $103 million in home equity.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.