Army Veteran given mortgage-free house
ORLANDO, Fla. - Army Staff Sergeant Alena Smiley was all smiles when she was presented with a three-bedroom, two-bath home -- mortgage-free.
The house was a gift courtesy of JPMorgan Chase & Co., as part of Homes on the Homefront, a program run by Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit organization that assists veterans like Smiley. The house was previously owned by the bank, and local volunteers pitched in to fix it up.
Smiley served in the Army for 18 years as a human resource specialist before being honorably discharged. She is currently active in the National Guard and works at the local VA.
Smiley toured the house for the first time with her two children, 12-year-old Allen and 17-year-old Osyria and told FOX 35 that she and her family can’t wait to move in to their new home: “I’m so excited. It’s like the best gift ever.”