In the early 2000s, during a visit to the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington DC, Mark Starr was struck by the loss of so many men and women who were effectively his peers. That visit led to a commitment about repaying a debt to the veterans who sacrificed their lives and well being for their country.
He founded Come Home to Acton (CHTA) comehometoacton.org, a project for which he had two visions: in the short term, he would leverage his expertise as a builder in Acton to construct an accessible home; in the longer-term, he would build wider awareness and create a model of support for other communities. To build a home for a service-disabled veteran and their family, Mr. Starr would encourage donations of time, talent, money, and goods from residents as well as from local business owners and the people in the community. He promised that 100% of these donations would be directed to the completion and occupancy of the house.
Unfortunately, Mark passed away before he could fulfill this dream. His wife, Andy Starr (this author) has made it her mission to complete the building. With an offer from Jeanson Builders to take on the contractor role, the house is now nearing completion. One painter asked Andy Starr three times to help with the project. He ended up painting the whole house and then he thanked her for allowing him and his family to participate.
While the majority of donations have been time and materials from local subcontractors, additional funds have come from residents and businesses in and surrounding Acton. CHTA is nearing completion of its goals. The website gives an opportunity for the public to contribute to the last bit of work, a much needed final boost. And with assistance from the veteran’s organization, Home for our Troops, a disabled veteran and his family have been chosen to occupy this home.
The new owner is an army staff sergeant who spent fourteen years on active duty and was deployed four times in Afghanistan and Iraq. He earned numerous service awards, including a Purple Heart. With his partner and two children, they have had to move frequently, and currently live in a two-bedroom apartment.
His partner describes what the award of this house means to her family: “This home is so much more than a structure that we would live in. It is a new path. It is something for him to care for, which creates purpose. It is the place that will feed his soul. It’s the place where he can get his hands dirty. Start a crazy house project. Make dinners for his family. Teach his boys how to play baseball and so much more. This is an opportunity to start fresh and that means the world.”
Andrea Starr is a former sales executive with a high-tech company, retired for about five years now. Come Home to Acton was her late husband Mark Starr’s project, with her administrative assistance.