OEF-OIF PTSD Veteran and Family Get New Home to Heal In

EXCHANGE: Veteran given a new house as he confronts PTSD
Belleville News Democrat
Marie Wilson
November 26, 2016

"I was in shock," Chobanov said, recalling his reaction to the news he'd be getting a debt-free house and a lot fewer financial worries. "I didn't have words for it at first."

ADVANCE FOR USE SATURDAY, NOV. 26, 2016, AND THEREAFTER - In this Oct. 6, 2016 photo, Army Spc.Tony Chobanov, who served two tours of combat duty, one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq, is seen with his wife Abby, right, and their children, from left, Olivia, 6, Milan, 8,and Faith,11, in Lisle, Ill. Chobanov can't wait to get his family into their new home. They will be a recipient of a new house to be built by a charity by an Arlington Heights-based nonprofit called 'A Soldier's Journey Home' with help from District 214 high school students. Daily Herald, via AP Paul Michna

NAPERVILLE, ILL.

The burden of spending roughly half his family's income on rent isn't even lifted yet, but Army Spc. Tony Chobanov of Naperville already feels better.

He's been working on getting better for the past two years, and this most recent step is proving a giant help.

An Arlington Heights-based nonprofit called A Soldier's Journey Home chose Chobanov, his wife, Abbey, and their three children as the 2017 recipients of a new house, built free for the family with donated materials and labor. The house, on 1.3 acres in Spring Grove donated by First Midwest Bank, should be complete by next June - just in time for the family's lease on a house near Abbey's parents in Lisle to expire at the end of the month.

Chobanov, 32, has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury stemming from his four years in the Army, which took him through two tours of combat duty - one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq.
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