This Veterans Day, the nonprofit Tunnel to Towers Foundation paid off the mortgage on Trevor Brown’s family’s home. Brown, a former Marine and volunteer firefighter with the Sterling Volunteer Fire Company, died in a home explosion in Sterling on February 16, 2024.
Brown was investigating the home for a gas leak at the time of the explosion.
“Firefighter Trevor Brown is a hero who committed his life service, first as a Marine and then as a firefighter,” said Tunnel to Towers Chairman and CEO Frank Siller. “Tunnel to Towers is honored to support the family he left behind and ensure they can focus on grieving this tremendous loss, without having to worry about making another mortgage payment.”
Brown is survived by a wife and three kids, who will now be able to live mortgage-free in the Virginia home that they shared.
“I am so grateful for the assistance … this is a huge burden off us that will allow us to focus on grieving, counseling, and picking ourselves up,” Brown’s widow Laura said in a news release.
This was one of 40 mortgage-free homes that Tunnel to Towers provided for Gold Star families and the families of fallen first responders. In addition, the foundation broke ground this fall on four new Veterans Villages in Denver, Buffalo, Detroit, and North Charleston, South Carolina. These villages will provide over 400 affordable housing units for veterans.
Last month, a grand jury in Loudoun County indicted Roger Bentley, a former Southern State Cooperative worker, for involuntary manslaughter and unlawful release of hazardous materials in connection with the explosion that killed Brown.
Feature image of Trevor Brown courtesy Loudoun Fire and Rescue
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