Two Milwaukee Fire Department (MFD) members will receive the 2010 Humanitarian of the Year award at the 4th Annual “Building Homes, Rebuilding Lives” Gala hosted by Homes for Our Troops. Captains Dan Lipski and Brian McNulty will receive the award this Saturday, March 6, in Boston, MA . They were chosen for the award based on their efforts to kick off and lead a successful fundraising campaign to support the nonprofit organization’s mission to build a home for SPC Jason Schultz. Lipski and McNulty will be recognized and thanked for helping to raise nearly $45,000.
“I am very pleased with the work Captain Lipski and Captain McNulty performed on behalf of Home for Our Troops,” said Acting Fire Chief Michael Jones. “I appreciate the dedication they put into a worthy cause, and for galvanizing the rest of our membership and the Milwaukee community to participate in the fundraising efforts.”
The MFD captains helped spearhead two fundraisers that tremendously benefited Home for Our Troops. One was called “Running for the Troops,” a fundraiser in which a dozen MFD members participated in by doing a relay marathon on a treadmill for 24 hours. They raised $9,903. The second fundraiser was called “Red Shirt Fridays.” This fundraiser allowed the department to sale MFD traditional t-shirts with an American flag on the sleeve to the membership and public for $10 each. Through this effort over $35,000 was raised. The efforts combined paved the way for three other statewide fire departments to sale red tshirts in support of Homes for Our Troops.
Homes for Our Troops
Homes for Our Troops was founded in 2004 to assist severely-injured servicemen and women and their immediate families by raising donations of money, building materials and professional labor, as well as coordinating the process of building a new home or adapting an existing home for handicapped accessibility. All services provided by Homes for Our Troops are at no cost to the veterans. To date, Homes for Our Troops has completed 32 homes and another 16 are under construction.