"It’s my honor and privilege to serve those who have served our country."

Landscapers donate services to military families and veterans

By Carolyn Mason 

Joe Keller gets choked up when he talks about his volunteer work with area veterans and families of deployed military personnel. The owner of Keller’s Lawn Care in Statesville, North Carolina, committed to donating his landscaping services to help keep up the lawn of Army Chaplain Brad Borders while he was deployed in Iraq. “It was my way of supporting Borders and his family while he served our country,” Keller says. He utilized the resources of GreenCare for Troops, a national organization that matches lawn-care professionals with military families. In 2009, he gathered volunteers using donated supplies and completely overhauled Border’s lawn. Throughout the deployment he kept the lawn mowed and the shrubs trimmed until Borders returned in 2010. 

This year, he chose to work on the lawn of World War II veteran Robert Mathews in Mooresville, North Carolina. He installed trees and bushes and worked on the landscape, but he was struck by the sight of 82-year-old Mathews watching from his window. 

“I wanted to add something meaningful to his view,” Keller says. First, he put in a garden of white rocks and then added a flagpole and outdoor lighting, including a spotlight on the flag. He planted three pencil holly plants on each side and installed a brass plate with Mathews’ name and rank at the base of the flag pole. All materials were donated by area merchants, and Keller and his crew handled the installation. He has to pause and fight deep emotion as he talks about what it meant to him to see Mathews enjoying the flag from his window. 

“It’s my honor and privilege to serve those who have served our country,” Keller says. 

Matching Resources to Needs 

Keller is among thousands of landscape business owners who participate in service projects designed to help military families and veterans around the country. Some volunteer on an individual basis, mowing the lawn or removing snow for a local military family in need, while others prefer being matched by national organizations serving military families and veterans. 

"It’s win-win. My employees feels good about their part in the effort." Tommy Trimm

GreenCare for Troops, the newly launched Snow Care for Troops; Homes for Troops and Renewal & Remembrance, the annual Arlington National Cemetery landscape effort by PLANET, are grass-root projects with massive appeal for both contractors and recipients. 

For landscape companies, the benefits of working with an established association include utilizing the organization’s professional staff, matching services, national networking, corporate funding and media contacts. Participants report enhanced community image, greater employee satisfaction and the joy of being part of a feel-good project. However, most volunteer contractors say the true motivation behind the time and money involved is a deep desire to give back to those serving in the military. 

GreenCare for Troops