Home At Last appoints new chairman

A new chairman has been selected to lead the Home At Last program that provides mortgage-free homes to disabled veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Gary Atwill, a U.S. Navy veteran of the Vietnam War, will assume the duties previously handled by Bill Criswell.

Criswell founded Home At Last in 2007. He said that at age 91, it’s time for him to hand the reins to someone younger.

“I just feel like it’s time for someone else to head up the program,” Criswell said. “I think Gary will absolutely do a good job.”

Atwill essentially has served as co-chair for several years, he said, so he knows the details of the operation.

“It is incredibly humbling and quite a challenge to follow the Home At Last founder, Bill Criswell,” Atwill said. “The organizational structure has been very successful, and I do not foresee making any changes in the formula. The seventh Home At Last home is under construction, and we look forward to more in the near future.”

The first six houses have been constructed in Oakland. Joshua Cope and his family received the first house in 2008. The typical HAL house has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garage and either an exercise or game room. The appraised value of each of the roughly 2,500-square-foot homes is about $300,000.

 “We reward the veterans who have been seriously injured,” the founder said. “Most of them are 100% disabled. And we just felt we needed to do something to express our appreciation for their service and sacrifice, and we felt that … this was an opportunity for the whole community … to step up and help us.”

Following Cope, combat-wounded veterans and their families who moved into new houses thanks to Home At Last were U.S. Army SPC Marcus Griffin, U.S. Army Sgt. Maj. Patrick Corcoran, U.S. Army Sgt. Jeffrey Kelly, U.S. Army Cpl. Jeremy Voels and U.S. Marine Cpl. Ronald Clayton Barnes Jr.

Work has just begun on a seventh home for U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Brandon Wittwer
and his family, and an eighth home for U.S. Army Capt. Elmer Rivera and his family is expected to be completed this year.

“The program provides the entire community an opportunity to express their thanks and appreciation to the veteran family for their service and sacrifice,” Criswell said. “The community has responded generously. Individuals, clubs, corporations, churches, architects, engineers, contractors, sub-contractors, material suppliers all have combined to make the mortgage-free homes a reality.”

“These mortgage-free homes make it possible for combat-wounded veterans and their families to truly be home at last,” Atwill said.

Contact Amy Quesinberry Rhode at [email protected].