Annette Allyn had not one but two pieces of her heart in Iraq. Her husband, Spc. William Allyn, was deployed with the National Guard’s A Troop 1-82 Calvary from Lebanon, Ore. Her 22 year-old son, Sgt. Michael Holder, was deployed there as well.
With a husband and son deployed and two other children at home, Annette had a lot on her plate.
She was trying to hold down the fort, but the fort had a roofing problem. There was a water leak, which brought not only water but also huge chunks of sheetrock with it.
The roof needed to be completely replaced. The previous year had been a tough one financially. William was unemployed prior to his deployment, and money was tight.
A roofing problem only added to the stress of the situation.
Christine Strawn, director of operations for the Oregon Operation Homefront Chapter, works closely with the Lebanon National Guard’s FRG.
“That’s how Annette found us,” Strawn said. “Once she came to us, we went through the procedure of applying for aid and worked on getting a lot of donations.”
Strawn used her connection with local radio station KRKT, 99.9 FM out of Albany, Ore., to put the call out to the community for help.
“They did a story about the case and asked for donations, and it all started coming together,” she said.
Meier Roofing of Albany provided the roofing materials at a large discount and delivered the materials to the job site. Evans Family Construction, also of Albany, donated the labor and time to install the roof. 3R Construction from Salem, Ore., helped with some coordinating issues.
With Operation Homefront's donation of $1,540 for the project and contributions from the community, the Allyns’ new roof was completed in early October of 2009.
“Annette came to us in July, and we got it done in just under three months,” Strawn said. “This was a huge project to coordinate, with lots of people involved.”
Strawn estimates the entire project was worth around $7,000.
“I was on the phone with Annette daily during the process,” she said. “I was giving her updates and she would call me to tell me what was going on. She was so excited.”
The family was touched and grateful, Strawn said.
“She is overwhelmed by the support and outreach from everyone,” said Strawn. “The entire Allyn family is so grateful to everyone involved in the project and wants to express their heartfelt thanks.”