Operation FINALLY HOME along with Dunbar Builders and Mungo Homes surprised U.S. Marine Sgt. Keith Turnbow with the news he and his family will be moving into a custom- built, mortgage-free home in Chapin in 2017. The surprise took place during a special groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday, June 21. Joining Keith was his wife, Maggy, their four children, representatives from Operation FINALLY HOME, Dunbar Builders, and Mungo Homes, who made the home site available for the project.
Keith and his family thought they were just going through the preliminary interview process with Operation FINALLY HOME and the builder. Imagine their surprise when they were escorted by the Patriot Guard Riders and greeted at the site of their new home.
U. S. Marine Sgt. Keith Turnbow grew up in a broken home in Florida and later New Jersey. Despite these challenges, he rose above it to become one of the most popular kids in his high school, even being voted Prom King.
After high school, he enlisted in the U.S. in 2004 where he was promoted to Private First Class following completion of his training. In 2005, after just two months of infantry training, he was deployed to Iraq with the 2nd Light Armor Recon. A few weeks into his service in Iraq, Turnbow’s vehicle was hit directly by an IED. He was the only one to take the blast directly, and it was later found to cause a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
However, he remained on active duty and continued to witness incredible carnage and death of his fellow military service members. He returned home in 2006 a changed man, no longer the effusive, friendly person he had been in high school and accepted an opportunity to return to Iraq in 2007.
After his second deployment, he reenlisted as a combat instructor at the School of Infantry. In 2010, he reconnected with Magdiel, a former high school classmate. They married and have a family now.
In 2014, he medically retired and is currently a full-time student and is focused on being a role model for his family.
Turnbow, who was promoted to sergeant in less than three years, was recognized with multiple awards including Good Conduct j4
Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Model, Humanitarian Service Media, and Iraq Campaign Medal.
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Operation FINALLY HOME
The mission of Operation FINALLY HOME is to provide custom built, mortgage-free homes to America’s military heroes and the widows of the fallen who have sacrificed so much to defend our freedom and values. Operation FINALLY HOME partners with corporate sponsors, builder associations, builders, developers, individual contributors, and volunteers to help America’s military heroes and their families transition to the home front by addressing one of their most pressing needs — a home to call their own. To find out more, visit OperationFinallyHome.org.
About Dunbar Builders
A home represents the most important buying decision you likely will ever make and perhaps your largest single investment. When it comes to choosing a custom home builder, you want a company with construction expertise and professionalism. At Dunbar builders, the mission is to create exceptional homebuilding experiences for their customers while providing high quality at a great value. With more than 20 years in business, Dunbar Builders gives you the confidence and peace of mind you want throughout the home building process. For more information, visit www.DunbarBuilders.com
About Mungo Homes
Currently ranked the 35th largest builder in the country by Builder magazine, the Mungo family started building new homes in Columbia, South Carolina in 1954. With a track record of success based on quality, trust, and stability, Mungo Homes-still family owned and operated- builds in eight markets throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama.
Mungo Homes was named America’s Best Builder 2012 by Builder magazine — an award for overall excellence in homebuilding based on finance/operations, design/construction, customer service/ quality, community/industry service and marketing. That same year, the National Association of Home Builders honored Mungo Homes as the National Green Advocate of the Year for hauSmart, Mungo’s exclusive energy-efficiency program. The company was also recognized as the winner of the 2008 National Housing Quality Award and is the only South Carolina-based builder ever honored with this prestigious award.
About Southern Living
Southern Living celebrates the essence of life in the South, covering the best in Southern food, home, garden, and travel. Reaching more than 23 million people each month, Southern Living connects consumers to the region’s rich culture through a variety of print, digital, mobile, tablet, and event platforms. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the rapidly expanding Southern Living brand is part of Time Inc., one of the largest media companies in the world.
