Purple Heart Veteran receives free home

A Purple Heart Veteran and his family were gifted a new, mortgage free home in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina this week.

Both Wells Fargo and and the Military Warriors Support Foundation donated the home to retired U.S. Army Sergeant, Jacob Valdez after he applied to their program, Homes4WoundedHeroes, while looking for scholarships for Purple Heart veterans. The program donates mortgage-free homes, as well as three years of family and financial mentoring, to veterans wounded in combat and Gold Star spouses in their transition from the military to civilian life.

“A few months later we got a phone call and it was just amazing, amazing news,” Valdez said to 5 WCSC.

“People usually mortgage a home for 30 years and all that’s done. It’s just a blessing.”

Now that the burden of purchasing a house has been lifted, the Valdez family plans on starting a school for at-risk youth focusing on STEM and arts education.

“I want to tell other veterans out there that there are great organizations out there to help them and you’re not alone,” Valdez said. “And not just organizations, but me, myself and fellow veterans are always here to help.”

The Military Warriors Support Foundation has donated almost 1,000 mortgage-free homes and helped veterans pay off almost $21 million in debt since 2010 and Wells Fargo has donated more than 400 homes for veterans in all 50 states since 2012.