Operation FINALLY HOME: The Barrett Family
U.S. Army Staff Sergeant and Austin Police Officer Tammy Barrett has spent her life dedicated to serving her country and community. Born in England while her father was serving in the United States Air Force, they moved to Texas where her father completed an honorable career. The youngest of six children, Tammy grew up with a servant’s heart.
After graduating high school, Tammy served in the Army for 10 years with stations in Korea, Kansas, Texas and Germany. After her honorable discharge, she desired to continue serving her community, so she became a state trooper with the Georgia State Police Department. After a tragic automobile accident claimed the life of her brother, Tammy moved to Texas to be closer to family and served with the Austin Police Department for more than 10 years.
In August of 2018, Tammy and her fiancé, Cortney, rented ATVs to explore Lincoln National Forrest. What started as a day filled with adventure turned tragic when Tammy hit a deep rut in the road and lost control of her vehicle, which sped over a 45-foot cliff. After a four-and-a-half-hour rescue, Tammy was taken to a nearby hospital and was diagnosed with several injuries including a severely dislocated spine. Following a 14-hour spine surgery, Tammy remains paralyzed from the waist down and will likely be unable to walk again.
Despite her injuries, Tammy adopted the slogan “Attack the Day” and remains dedicated to her recovery.
Austin Cops for Charities along with Henley Homes and Operation FINALLY HOME are proud to provide Tammy and her family with a custom-built, mortgage-free home in the Austin area.
biography via Operation Finally Home
Your donation to Operation FINALLY HOME will help us furnish the mortgage-free home that will be provided to US Army and Austin PD veteran Tammy Barrett.
How We Got Involved
When it comes to things of the heart, all I can say is, “God is good!” I had been pondering for several months over which charity our firm should partner with to give back to our community in 2019. Our firm has done some things on-and-off in the past, such as renovating the recreation room at Safe Place through the Interior Design Society, giving food donations to the Helping Hands Ministry, having a home gathering to raise awareness and funds for The Refuge for DMST, and gathering funds for Hope for Minds. While we were proud to be able to be a part of these short-term charity events, at the time we were also expending all of the bandwidth our firm had to keep our heads above water and build the business. It occurred to me recently that now it was time to look out to the community to lend a helping hand in a bigger way.
I checked into several great organizations in town and discussed it with the staff, who told me that they were fine with any one of the organizations we had discussed, but I could tell that none of them really made their hearts sing. About a week or two after this discussion, I got a call from Gary Henley with Henley Homes. He asked me if I would be open to helping him with interior design and furnishings on a home being built for a local police officer who had been injured and left paralyzed. He barely made it through two sentences before I blurted out, “Count us in!” Those of you who know me know that I am very patriotic and love our country (4th of July is one of my favorite holidays if that tells you anything). I also have a special place in my heart for those who serve our country and communities. Tammy has done both of these things and so all I can say is, “What a warrior princess!” The icing on the cake was when my staff mirrored my excitement and enthusiasm about this cause as well. It is a perfect fit.