Posted on 07/03/2017 6:21:10 AM PDT by rktman
An Army veteran’s gift to charity will now enable 25 Oklahoma families to own their own homes.
Sergeant First Class E-7 Stephen Florentz left behind his home and $2.25 million after his death to Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity, which said it would use the money from his estate to provide houses to 25 families who need them, WXIN reported.
Florentz spent his life giving service to his country. He started out serving in Vietnam as a helicopter medic, became wounded in a battle in Asia, and received a Purple Heart before coming back to the U.S.
Florentz also volunteered to serve a year in Operation: Desert Storm in Saudi Arabia and gave his service to veterans in VA hospitals across the country.
“He gave his life for veterans,” Florentz’s friend Mike Bourland told KFOR.
As someone with a background in service, Florentz especially admired the work of Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity.
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
Ordinary people, doing extraordinary things...
Florentz July 2, 1942 - Dec. 11, 2016 OKLAHOMA CITY Stephen Martin Florentz, 74, of Oklahoma City, OK, passed away December 11, 2016. Stephen was born July 2, 1942 in Brooklyn, New York to Irvine and Beatrice Florentz. The U.S. Army Retiree Sergeant 1st Class E7 served in the Vietnam War as a helicopter medic from 1966-1968. During his service, Stephen received a Purple Heart, an Air Medal (FOURTH OAK LEAF CLUSTER) with "V" device for Valor Under Fire and a SE Asia Medal.
Upon his return, he went back to school to become a surgical technician with the Veterans Administration. He worked for VA Hospitals in New England, Tennessee, and Arkansas before landing a job in Oklahoma City in 1987.
Stephen reentered the Army Reserve in Oklahoma City, and when the U.S. entered the war in Iraq in 1991, his unit was activated overseas. Stephen served nearly a year in Operation Desert Storm, taking care of injured American soldiers at the army hospital in Saudi Arabia. Stephen retired from the VA in 2006.
He enjoyed being active and considered himself an athlete. Before he retired, he would run six miles, and bike around Lake Hefner daily. Stephen also spent his free time volunteering for various churches around Oklahoma City.
He is survived by his son, Matthew Florentz; sister, Francine Leibowiz; and nephews, Michael and David Leibowiz. He is preceded in death by his father Irvine Florentz and mother Beatrice Florentz.
A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m., Thursday, June 29, 2017, at the Legacy Estates Addition at NW 72nd St. & Council Rd. in Oklahoma City. Interment will follow at Fort Sill National Cemetery in Elgin, OK at 2 p.m.
Published in The Oklahoman on June 25, 2017
The generosity is overwhelming. RIP, Sir. I would like to ask if the Habitat is going to invest the money and take the interest to build the homes. It seems that $2.25 million is an awful lot of money for only 25 familiy sized homes. Just an observation.
Would like to amend my comment.....bad math. Less than $100,000 per home........maybe that is consistent with that area of the country.
I was thinking the same thing.
Yet the math figures out to only $90,000 per house. That’s well below the average price of a home.
You should re-check your math. That’s only $100,000 each.
Possibly, if they are constructed for special needs folks or disabled vets, it could cost more per house. Regardless, nice move Sgt.
That’s only $100,000 for each home. Not extravagant at all.
Don’t know the housing market around OKC and if volunteers provide a lot of the labor, the houses could be done for lesser amounts. Plus reused material from the HFH stores. We were in one last week looking for something for Mrs. rktman and after we left, I mentioned that with some planning someone could acquire the majority of smalls from the store. Doors, sinks, toilets, conduit, junction boxes, plumbing, paint, light fixtures.
And that is for materials. Labor is mostly free.
Sometimes the land is free, or purchased by a non-profit.
Some of the basic labor is done for free, but the skilled stuff is all paid labor. I’ve worked with Habitat a little bit.
They make the homes to current code and use good high quality building materials so they last. I think they also match 2012 National energy code requirements for insulation, air sealing, HVAC etc. That code helps greatly reduce wasted energy costs.
The time to scrounge cabinets, toilets etc from a Restore would be untenable. Imagine if you had enough cabinets to do 90% of a kitchen. It’s far more cost effective to buy new than to scrounge part and try to get a custom cabinet to match the old reclaimed one.
The planning needed to get the small from a junk store would far outweigh the benefit, plus, much of that stuff may not be up to current code, such as toilets.
While it may be possible to do one house out of scrap materials from a ReStore, I couldn’t imagine the sheer work and frustration in finding enough stuff for 25 of them.
Probably correct on single house at a time which I was thinking. Not a whole subdivision. LOL! But, if someone wanted to do the restore route, it could be done and save some bucks while at it.
Absolutely. I was there once and picked up enough casement to trim my entire basement for about $50.
Yes, the homes will run about 100K a piece as they must meet certain regulatory requirements. The interest on that money , Might build an outhouse.
I wonder what he left his only child?
Saw some “blinds inside” french doors the other day for $125.00.
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