TEMPLE, Texas — A Temple military family had their home mortgages paid off by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation as part of this year's Gold Star Spouses Day.
Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 David Knadle's family was one of three selected by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation to have their mortgages paid off.
Knadle lost his life on Nov. 20, 2019, when his Apache helicopter crashed during a mission in Afghanistan. He left behind wife Silkey, step-son Eason and daughter Starling.
The surprise was an “incredible gift of stability and security for our family," Silkey said. "Our home holds memories of our life together, it’s the only life our daughter will know with her sweet father.”
Gold Star Spouses Day is on April 5 this year, and it's a day to remember and honor the surviving husbands and wives of service members that paid the ultimate sacrifice.
“Military spouses are the backbone of our military. When a hero goes off to serve his country, he doesn’t serve alone. His whole family serves," Chairman and CEO of Tunnel to Towers Frank Siller said in a press release. "In some ways the spouses and the children have a much harder job - they have to wait and worry while their loved ones are risking their lives. That is why when tragedy strikes and they do not come home, we need to be there to help."
Tunnel to Towers’ Gold Star Family Home Program honors the legacy of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our country by providing the surviving spouses and young children with mortgage-free homes.
The families of Army Major Agustin Gonzalez of North Carolina and Army Sargent First Class Will Lindsay of Colorado also had their home mortgages paid off by the foundation.
“By paying off the mortgages on these homes, we hope to bring a little stability and security to their lives in these uncertain times by providing them with the knowledge that they never have to make another mortgage payment,” Siller said.
The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation’s mission is to honor the sacrifice of FDNY Firefighter Stephen Siller, who laid down his life to save others on Sept. 11, 2001.
To date, The Tunnel to Towers Foundation has spent over $250 million to honor and support our first responders and veterans and their families.
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