Army veteran gets home in Fuquay-Varina from Operation: Coming Home

FUQUAY-VARINA, N.C. (WTVD) -- Right now, it just looks like a lot of two-by-fours and concrete floors but to Staff Sgt. Tommy Rieman, this is the gift he always wanted to give to his children.

"I feel so proud and excited my kids get to have a home, and I get to have that for them," Rieman said.

An Army veteran, Rieman received the Silver Star for his service in Iraq. Rieman used his own body to shield a fellow veteran, and he was shot twice.

"There's times in there of disparity when you're thinking this could be it. Those you'll never forget," Rieman said.

Rieman walked through his home for the first time Thursday. Meanwhile, people who helped make the Fuquay-Varina home possible with Operation: Coming Home signed a truss, forever making them a part of this project.

"I want to know every name and thank them personally that was involved with this. It doesn't matter if they just showed up to sweep the street or if they donated all the wood. I want to hug them and say thank you because they're giving me something I haven't been able to give myself," Rieman said.

Raising the roof for the Riemans on a day this hero will never forget.

The home will be complete and move-in ready by June.