Volunteers help finish home for wounded Army veteran in Mechanicsville

Mar 22, 2026 - 16:25

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Volunteers help finish home for wounded Army veteran in Mechanicsville

HANOVER COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — A Hanover Army veteran severely wounded in Iraq is one step closer to receiving the keys to his new home just in time for America's 250th birthday, thanks to the help of community members and volunteers on Saturday.

Homes For Our Troops, a nonprofit that builds and donates homes for veterans, held a community landscaping event on Saturday, March 21, for a new house being built for Sgt. Brian Pearce, who currently lives in Mechanicsville.

Pearce was on his second deployment to Iraq when he was severely injured on Oct. 20, 2006. An improvised explosive device blast hit his vehicle, and a piece of shrapnel penetrated his helmet and skull and lodged in his right occipital lobe.

Pearce lost consciousness and was then airlifted to a military hospital in Balad. He underwent surgery for a brain hemorrhage and spent six weeks in the intensive care unit after he returned to the U.S.

His injuries resulted in blindness, Tinnitus -- meaning he experiences ringing noises -- as well as severe traumatic brain injury with balance impairment, migraines and bilateral hearing loss, according to the nonprofit.

"I remember how it felt, I remember how it smelled, I remember how it tasted," Pearce told Homes For Our Troops. "I have dreams or nightmares... every night where I remember that explosion."

Pearce now lives with his family in a colonial-style, two-story home. He said going up and down the stairs has become challenging with time as he ages, noting that he's only able to shower in the second-floor bathroom whenever his wife Angie Pearce is home.

(Photo: Homes For Our Troops)

The new, specially-adapted custom home will help Pearce navigate safely from room to room with an open floor plan. The house has more than 40 major accessibility modifications, including widened doorways, roll-under countertops and sinks and a roll-in shower, per a release. The home will also be located in Mechanicsville.

"The biggest feature I'm looking forward to is [that] everything's going to be on one floor and there's going to be a bathtub. I love soaking in the bathtub," he said. "It'll give us a permanent sense of normalcy."

Organizers said about 100 volunteers showed up to help work on the home on Saturday, including landscaping and adding final touches to the house. An official ceremony presenting Pearce with the keys to his new home will take place on May 2.