Rising from the ashes
Foundation’s volunteers help Vietnam veteran reclaim his life with mobile home restoration
Ayear and a half ago, Fred Vigil lost everything.
It was Christmas Day 2016 when his mobile home on Old Galisteo Road
caught fire, killing his two dogs and consuming old photographs and war uniforms. The home burned to a pit of ash and metal scraps. The day of the fire, his niece, Linda Vigil, and other family members came to his aid, launching a GoFundMe campaign that eventually raised nearly $9,000 to purchase another mobile home. But the home didn’t accommodate the needs of the disabled Vietnam veteran, who still suffers from the effects of the war.
Fred Vigil, 70, has had one knee replacement surgery because of his war injuries and expects to undergo another surgery next month. He also has had post-traumatic stress disorder since serving in Pleiku, Vietnam, in 1967 — a condition worsened by the fire.
Earlier this month, a nonprofit organization affiliated with Home Depot stepped in to help the veteran reclaim his life, modifying his mobile home to make it more accessible and improving its condition.
A team of about 49 volunteers with the Home Depot Foundation converted Vigil’s bathtub into a walk-in shower, built an outdoor ramp, installed smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, painted the interior and exterior, replaced small, single-pane windows with larger frames and swapped carpeting for laminate flooring.
The project — the foundation’s first in New Mexico — was part of the company’s nationwide effort to support veterans whose living spaces don’t adequately accommodate their needs, said Dana Odney, the Team Depot captain who helped with Vigil’s home.
“Seeing what happened with his original home and the steps that have been taken to get him to where we’re at today” is the most fulfilling part of being on the project, Odney said. “Supporting our veterans, it’s huge — the whole [idea of] pay it forward and giving back.”
After his second knee surgery, Vigil said, he likely will have to use a walker, meaning the accessibility of his home is not just advantageous but vital.
“It’s helping me a lot,” he said. “The shower, the ramps. … Before, I had a hard time getting out of the bathtub.”
“I don’t leave the house much,” he added. “I just go around the yard. But I can enjoy my home more now.”
Vigil said the home makeover came as a big surprise. He laughed, recalling that when he first heard about the project, he “thought it was a scam.”
The changes to Vigil’s home haven’t just improved his access and mobility but also have boosted his mental health, he said.
Odney said she’s noticed the emotional shift. “It’s a better all-around life for him,” she said. “It’s going to be easier for him.”
Since 2011, she added, the foundation has improved more than 40,000 veterans’ homes and facilities across the nation.
Vigil was humble about his revamped home.
“I feel there are people that need it more than I do,” he said. “… But I’m glad I have it. I never thought I would have it after the fire.”