New home will go to an injured soldier

EAGLE MOUNTAIN (AP) — A Utah developer is offering a new home to a soldier who was injured while serving in the military.

Scott Weber, co-owner of Alta Vista Homes, said there are no strings attached. The company is looking to find a soldier who was injured in the war in Iraq and give the family a fresh start.

"The biggest challenge is to find the right family," Weber said.

Weber said land in the Silverlake subdivision in Eagle Mountain has been donated by DAI Development Co. The city is working out details on the building permit, and other donations have been coming in to help pay for the project.

The company has already collected a few names of soldiers in need.

The families that are considered but don't receive the new house will still get something, including free groceries for a year and possibly scholarships, Weber said.

"We are still trying to work out all of the details and donations, but all money donated will go directly to the project," Weber said. "This is purely philanthropic."

Gordon Ewell, a father of six from Eagle Mountain, and his family have been nominated for the home. Ewell returned from Iraq last December and was declared legally blind as a result of head trauma.

Ewell's wife, Terra, said the injuries have changed the family's life. She said the offer from Alta Vista is exciting to the Ewells and any other family that has been affected by the war.

"I think it is an incredible opportunity for all the families involved to get to know each other," she said. "There are emotions that you go through that other people who don't experience a wounded warrior don't understand."

For information about donations to the project, e-mail: freedomhome@altavistahomes.net.