In 2010, Ben Tomlinson was paralyzed from a gunshot battle in Afghanistan. Today, Ben lives life in a wheelchair and needs help to do simple tasks we all take for-granted Now the people from the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation and the Gary Sinise Foundation wants to help Ben Tomlinson build a smart home in Jacksonville, AL. Here is video from Jacksonville State University showing the announcement of a concert to help Ben Tomlinson!
The fundraising effort is called “Operation Ben.” The Tunnel to Towers Foundation and the Gary Sinise Foundation have partnered through their “Building for America’s Bravest” program to build Sgt. Tomlinson a “Smart Home” in Jacksonville, Alabama. “Operation Ben” is a community wide effort to honor Sgt. Ben Tomlinson with a Lt. Dan Band Benefit Concert scheduled for May 19, 2013 at JSU Stadium in Jacksonville, Alabama.
Proceeds of the concert will go towards building Ben a smart home in Jacksonville, Alabama, which will allow him the opportunity to live independently. This smart home will be the first of the kind in Alabama. The home will be customized to meet his needs. It will have automated features that can be controlled with a touch of the iPad, which works as a remote control. The home’s countertop, stovetop and cabinets will drop on command to be at Tomlinson’s level. The home will be similar to this smart home built for Cpl. Tyler Huffman.
Organizers have to raise roughly $400,000 to pay for the home. And the Lt. Dan Band concert is a key element of the fundraising effort. The concert will take place on Sunday May 19th at 6 pm on Burgess-Snow Field on the Jacksonville State University campus. Ticket prices range from $25-$50. You can now order tickets for the event at http://www.OperationBen.com
Yes; Geek Alabama will be there to take pictures of the concert! I will also monitor the smart home construction when it starts this Summer! Let’s pack Burgess-Snow Field on May 19th!
Learn more about the Tunnel to Towers Foundation at: http://tunnel2towers.org/
Learn more about the Gary Sinise Foundation at: http://www.garysinisefoundation.org/
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