A FOREVER HOME AFTER A LIFETIME OF SERVICE

Chuck, a Des Moines Iowa native, joined the military service at the age of 19. He served in the U.S Army overseas and was part of the evacuation crew when Charles De Gaulle expelled NATO forces from France. Chuck remembers grabbing whatever equipment they could and withdrawing to Germany as fast as possible.

Instilled with a desire to travel, Chuck kept rank and served in the Air Force after his tour with the U.S. Army was completed. Thinking he would never marry, his world was forever changed when he met Susan, a Spencer Iowa native, at a mutual friend’s wedding; “I didn’t know who she was, but I knew she was the one.”

Chuck and Susan settled into their first assignment as a military family at Davis - Monthan Air Force Base outside of Tucson, Arizona, believing they would travel the world together. It was only a short six months of marriage when Chuck received deployment orders for Southeast Thailand just as the Vietnam War was escalating.

“As soon as we got married, I thought, oh gosh, this is going to be great because I love to travel, says Susan. “ But, where he was going, I could not go.”

Chuck recalls, “So, off I went and I tell you what, the first thing I remember the most is getting on that bus and leaving her - and it hurt a lot. I didn’t think I was ever going to see her again.”

Chuck was on a transport in route to Nakhon Ratchasima, AKA Korat, Thailand when the transport veered off course over North Vietnam. Soon, explosions echoed through the transport. “I thought, this is it, we’re not even going to make it to Thailand,” remembered Chuck.

The plane did land in Korat and Chuck got to work running supply lines to American forces. Losing forty pounds in the first four months, he dealt with a tough Thai military and harsh environmental hazards; including giant rats and venomous Cobras.

Days between assignments could be slow, but when work came, his team had to move fast. One day, tasked with preparing tanks for transport, a cobra reared up as they approached, sending them running. Chuck insisted they finish the job despite the interruption.

“I'm not going to run away from responsibility - I might run from a cobra, but I’ve got to get back to those tanks,” Chuck chuckles.

After a year away from his new bride, Chuck boarded a plane to come home. “Getting on the plane coming home to see her; I thought it was a dream. I thought, I’m not really on this plane, I’m going to wake up and I’ll still be over there.”

Chuck continued to serve his country through the Reserves at Dover Air Force Base, Maryland.

“Here I thought I would get to travel.” Susan says with a grin. “But, the only places I ever went were to Arizona, Iowa and Delaware.”

During Desert Storm, Chuck was activated and ran supplies to troops in Iraq during one of the coldest winters on record. “It was so cold the Chesapeake Bay froze over and you could walk from the Eastern Shore to Annapolis.” Despite the harsh temperatures, Chuck kept the lines moving.

Susan recalls Chuck coming home covered in a fine, powdery sand that he would pick up on his clothes and skin from loading planes that had returned from Iraq. There were concerns the sand may contain chemical weapons used by Saddam Hussein and after a long night loading supplies, Chuck would itch relentlessly.

In 1998 Chuck retired from the Air Force as Master Sergeant. Together they decided to move, choosing between Arizona, Iowa or Florida.

When asked why they chose to move back to Spencer Iowa, Chuck responded, “The people are so nice - they look at me as Chuck, not black Chuck. They see me as the greeter at Walmart.” * Note: Chuck has been reassigned to a new position after Walmart eliminated their door greeter roles.

They spent years a renting a home in Spencer after moving back, but when that house was scheduled to have new ownership, they found themselves in desperate need of a new home. That was when they met Erica Schultes, REALTOR® and Jenn Hoberg, Lender - both Homes for Heroes Affiliates.

Homes for Heroes is a Nationwide program started after the tragic events of 9/11, made up of Affiliates dedicated to serving and giving back to local community heroes including: Military, Law Enforcement, Firefighters/ EMS, Teachers and Healthcare Professionals.

“I say God planned all of this,” said Susan. “We had gone to look at our neighbors home that was for sale and that is how we got in contact with Erica and Jenn.”

Finally, after a lifetime of service that took him to the Cold War Europe, the jungles of Thailand, and supplying American Forces in Iraq, Chuck and Susan found their forever home in a little corner of Northwest Iowa.

To find out more about Homes for Heroes, visit: http://www.homesforheroes.com/affiliate/erica-schultes