When Brunner was first notified he had been matched with a military family through the Project EverGreen program, it was a pleasant surprise, especially because it was his birthday. Brunner doesn’t consider himself to be a “big birthday guy,” but he does admit that becoming an official SnowCare for Troops volunteer was an appropriate present.

Brunner originally decided to volunteer for SnowCare for Troops because he loves to be outside in the cold weather and wanted to be able to help military families who need some assistance, particularly because of Wisconsin’s brutal winters where snowfall averages range from 40 inches to well over 120 inches annually.

“Snow removal is just one stress and hardship that a military family shouldn’t need to worry about during a deployment,” said Brunner. “There’s a sense of satisfaction but also personal responsibility to give back because their sacrifice is so much greater than mine.”

And although Brunner feels like he should be the grateful one because our military personnel do so much for our country, Brunner says the military family he assisted was truly thankful for the help.

To spread the SnowCare for Troops message to others, Brunner often talks with his friends about his volunteer experience with the program. He knows a number of people who work in the snow removal and landscaping businesses, so he’s always mentioning how volunteering to help military families with these services is a simple sacrifice that can have a huge impact.

Brunner plans on continuing to volunteer for SnowCare for Troops but hopes that soon he’ll even have the time to help with landscaping and lawncare services over the summer as part of the GreenCare for Troops program.

SnowCare for Troops was started in 2010 by Project EverGreen and since its inception, more than 5,000 military families and more than 1,500 snow removal contractors have registered to receive or provide these much needed snow and ice removal services.