For wounded Iraq war veteran, new, accessible home in Fort Worth is 'a blessing'

For wounded Iraq war veteran, new, accessible home in Fort Worth is 'a blessing'
12:00 AM CST on Thursday, November 25, 2010

Angela K. Brown,
FORT WORTH – Marine Cpl. Zach Briseno jokes that he's taller since returning from Iraq – although he's most grateful that the prosthetic legs that add several inches to his height allow him to chase after his 5-year-old son.

Although he'd never complain, it has taken time for Briseno to get used to life after losing his legs in an explosion, and it's not easy for him to move around his apartment in his wheelchair. That's why a nonprofit organization is providing him with a home that will have wider doors, lower counters, a special shower and other safety features.

"It's truly a blessing for me and my family," Briseno said this week as relatives and friends surrounded him on the lot where the home is to be built by next spring.

HelpingaHero.org, a Houston-based nonprofit, has provided nearly two dozen new homes for veterans severely wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Each project is a partnership with a developer and builder and supported by individual donations from the community, said Meredith Iler, the organization's chairwoman.
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For wounded Iraq war veteran, new, accessible home