Bremer Team launches 30 Days for 30 Vets program
Thirty deserving McHenry County military veterans will receive the gifts of a lifetime this fall as part of the 30 Days for 30 Vets program coordinated by The Bremer Team Keller Williams Success Realty.
Nominations will open Thursday, Aug. 1. Sought are stories of veterans whose lives would be vastly improved by receiving a much-needed home renovation, said Dawn Bremer, owner and president of the McHenry-based Bremer Team. She added that, already, home repair, appliance and improvement firms have stepped up with more than $200,000 in pledges of services and materials.
“I’m blown away by the enthusiastic reaction so far,” she said. “We are getting calls from people asking how they can help, how they can be a part of it. It’s great to see how the community can put divisions aside and come together.”
Nominations may be made by clicking “apply” at 30daysfor30vets.com.
In early October, a committee of community members and veterans will review all nominations received through Sept. 30. At a later October date, a private celebration for recipients and participating vendors will take place at the McHenry Outdoor Theater — Golden Age Cinemas.
Then, each day in November — the month of Veterans Day — one deserving recipient’s story will be shared on the 30daysfor30vets website as well as on the 30daysfor30vets Facebook page, Bremer said.
It all started when the leaders of Crystal Lake-based Innovative Home Concepts brought up the idea to provide a free roof for a veteran in need, she added. Rhett Wilborn, owner of Innovative Home Concepts, and Courtney Wander, the company’s general manager, said they had lunch with Bremer several weeks ago to talk about their idea.
“We brought the idea up to her because we know she works with a lot of veterans, and she took it just 1,000 times further than we had thought of,” Wilborn said. “She was just like, ‘That sounds great. Let’s work together on this thing.’”
Bremer said that one of her agents, U.S. Marine veteran Michael Adams, was a strong motivator for launching in the spring the Bremer Team Heroes Savings Plan, which cuts closing costs for qualifying veterans. The two talked about the roof idea, and how many veterans struggle in silence when it comes to keeping up with home maintenance.
Soon, Bremer had multiple companies on board, offering everything from roofing to gutter replacements, countertops, air-conditioning systems, water heaters, appliances, kitchen remodels, ramps and more. Home Depot has even pledged a $24,999 grant.
To date, about 20 home improvement firms have stepped up. Along with Innovative Home Concepts, other top donors so far include Jett’s Heating & Air, Accurate Plumbing Pros Inc., Kenny’s Floor Covering Inc. and The Glad Lamb, which provides cabinet refinishing and specialty painting.
More would be welcome, Bremer said, as would monetary donations to further support the effort. Reach out to Bremer at (847) 456-6334, or bremerteaminfo@gmail.com.
“This is going to be an incredible program,” said Adams, who served two tours of duty in Iraq. “You always see great support for veterans in the form of discounts or free entry to events and stuff like that, but it doesn’t necessarily provide what veterans really, truly need.
“Veterans tend to be prideful people who are hesitant to seek help,” he said. “I think having an opportunity for somebody close to them to write their story and explain why they are deserving — to be that reach-out — will help tremendously.”
Bremer said she plans to make 30 Days for 30 Vets an annual event, and expand it to include Lake County next year.
“It’s all so great,” added Innovative Home Concepts’ Wander, whose father, an Army veteran, recently passed away. “Rhett and I both have parents who were in the military, so this is very personal to us.”
The Bremer Team offices are located at 1218 N. Green St., Unit D, McHenry. For other information, call (847) 456-6334, send queries to bremerteaminfo@gmail.com, visit 30daysfor30vets.com or find 30 Days for 30 Vets on Facebook.