PORT ANGELES — A North Olympic Peninsula carpet retailer will host today an event to raise awareness for Building for America’s Bravest, a nonprofit program that builds homes for catastrophically injured veterans.
America’s Bravest representatives will be at McCrorie Carpet One locations in Port Hadlock at 10 a.m., Sequim at noon and Port Angeles at 2 p.m. today.
They will present owner David McCrorie with a shadowbox plaque in honor of his participation with the organization through the Carpet One cooperative.
New York firefighter
One of the representatives will be a New York City firefighter who participated in the search and recovery efforts following the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings Sept. 11, 2001.
McCrorie said the Peninsula stores, as part of Carpet One, support America’s Bravest heavily — not just financially, but by providing flooring products in the homes the program builds.
The nearest veteran project home is currently being considered for the metro Seattle area, he said.
There are no projects being contemplated for Western Washington, but if there were, McCrorie said, he would supply the flooring.
Although not a veteran, McCrorie considers himself deeply patriotic and a “staunch supporter” of those who have served our country.
Builds ‘smart homes’
America’s Bravest, said McCrorie, honors service and sacrifice by building “smart homes” with technology designed to meet the needs of veterans who have lost multiple limbs in the line of duty.
The homes include wheelchair-accessible kitchen countertops and bathroom fixtures with electronic controls that can often be accessed from a smartphone.
Building for America’s Bravest is a program of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which honors Stephen Siller, a New York City fireman who lost his life after running with a full backpack from the Battery Tunnel to the World Trade Center to save disaster victims on 9/11.
McCrorie said he has met members of the Siller family at Carpet One meetings. Brothers George, Russ and Frank Siller started the foundation to honor their brother, Stephen, in 2001.
Since an initial 5K race in 2002, the foundation has raised more than $10 million to help wounded firefighters, military members and orphaned children through America’s Bravest and other programs.
The Sillers, McCrorie said, have “taken this foundation beyond what most people can believe.”
Through the foundation, he said, “many families can live normally, even though they’ve suffered lost limbs and burns.”
McCrorie Carpet One is located at 11662 Rhody Drive in Port Hadlock, 279 W. Washington St. in Sequim and 547 N. Oakridge Drive, Port Angeles.
For information, contact McCrorie Carpet One at 360-457-7500.
For more on Building for America’s Bravest, see www.ourbravest.org.
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Reporter Mark Swanson can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5054, or mswanson@peninsuladailynews.com.
