EAST HAVEN, CT — U.S. Army Specialist Evan Marcy is a highly decorated war hero, with his Purple Heart among the many medals, all testaments to his selfless service and sacrifice: Marcy lost his left leg while deployed in Afghanistan.
He grew up in New Hyde Park on Long Island, but was really a “firehouse kid” in New York City. Marcy spent many a day over his young life hanging in a Bronx firehouse where his father, Dwayne Marcy, was a longtime firefighter. Evan, who currently lives in Louisiana, is pretty far from his home.
“He said he wanted to come home,” Building Homes for Heroes founder Andy Pujol told Patch.
“I sat in the rubble and prayed to God, ‘show me the way.'”
In the hours and days after the Sept. 11, 2001 attack, Pujol was one of the thousands of volunteers who help support rescue efforts at the World Trade Center.
“In my heart of hearts, I knew I had to go in to help. I have family who are firefighters and police officers, so I went in to join them,” he said. “I had friends in the Tower, people that I knew were there, and one that I lost.”
That profound and experience moved him deeply, he said.
“They were true heroes,” he said of the firefighters who risked their lives trying to save the lives of others. “Looking at them, my God, who are these people? They’ll never be fully appreciated, I thought. I sat in rubble. Fires burning all around; fires burned for days and days. I sat in the rubble and prayed to God, show me the way. In tears, I made a promise to serve my country and live up to it.”
The experience moved him to help others by focusing his efforts on the severely wounded men and women of the U.S. military. Five years later, in 2006, Pujol founded Building Homes for Heroes.
He said he was inspired to build homes for veterans.
“When we came out of 9/11, we decided to help others and start our own charity. And int eh case of firefighters, they saved thousands of lives, but tragically so many lost theirs,” he said. There’s a very thin line between first responders and members of the military, for Pujol.
“They sacrifice, and they are heroes.”
343. 343. 343.
Building Homes for Heroes builds those homes from the ground up. But it also receives donations of fixer-upper houses from JPMorgan Chase. And as of Saturday, when its latest home will be handed over to a deserving veteran, Building Homes for Heroes is at 343 homes.
Thousands apply for these homes. But in the case of a house in East Haven, just a couple of hours from New Hyde Park, New York, one firefighter told another firefighter about the Connecticut house listed on the Building Homes for Heroes website. FDNY firefighter Dwayne Marcy heard about the house.
Marcy was one of the thousands who rushed to the then-Twin Towers and was among the first who went in, Pujol said. His son Evan, who was a military photographer on the front lines, is a war hero.
“The FDNY asked, ‘Andy, can you help us?’ We have this house and firefighters jumped on this. It’s the 343rd house we’ve done. Three-hundred-and-forty-three firefighters lost their lives on Sept. 11. And the FDNY 343 Ride was coming up. It was almost like it’s a miracle. To tie it back in to an FDNY family is a miracle. Was it coincidence to find the son, a veteran, and a hero, of a FDNY firefighter there on 9/11? I don’t know. But when firefighters recommended Evan, who wanted to come back home, we got him as close to home as we could.”
Saturday, a hero veteran will be welcomed to his new home …in East Haven
Saturday is the FDNY 343 Ride along the Connecticut shoreline.
“The 343 Ride will once again be hitting the road in 2023 to honor our fallen brothers and raising funds for our wounded veterans. This year’s ride is especially meaningful as our main benefactor, ‘Building Homes for Heroes,’ will be gifting their 343rd home to one of our own, retired U.S. Army Specialist Evan Marcy.”
And Evan will be doing that ride with his dad … and stopping at his new house. And the town will be there to greet and welcome him: East Haven is pulling out all the stops.
The Building Homes for Heroes staff, East Haven Mayor Joseph A. Carfora, state and local dignitaries, first responders, an honor guard, and myriad military groups and agencies will be at the home to greet Marcy and his family. As will the FDNY 343 Ride riders.
Residents are encouraged to join the ceremony welcoming Marcy to East Haven. The ceremony is set for 11 a.m., and residents who wish to attend should meet at the Joseph Melillo Middle School, 67 Hudson St., starting at 10 a.m., for shuttle service to Marcy’s new home. His address is not being given out in advance to protect his privacy.