Cove lawn care company gives back to the troops
Fri, 2016-06-17 05:00
News Staff
By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press
When Mike Aker, founder and president of Five Brothers Lawn Care in Copperas Cove, was approached by Project EverGreen about their program GreenCare for Troops two years ago, he wasn’t sure about helping out due to the size of his business.
“We’re not a big operation. I have three employees, but I thought about it and realized if I could only help one or two families, it would still make a difference.”
He isn’t a stranger to giving back, but Project EverGreen was a unique opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
Now in his third year of participation, Aker takes time to care for the lawns of active duty and veterans as they need help.
“I have never met (this client) face to face,” Aker said. “They send me a message when they need lawn care and I show up.”
Project EverGreen is a non-profit dedicated to revitalizing green spaces across the country and it receives funding and support from turf care equipment manufacturers like The Toro Company.
Even before getting involved, Akers had already been providing lawn care services to veterans and military families.
“I did work outside the program with a buddy of mine, we always volunteered when we heard of a family in need, or would help clean up a yard for a deployed solider that had a lawn that was overgrown. We just want to help out,” says Aker.
Project EverGreen credits the initiative’s success to volunteers like Aker and Five Brothers Lawn Care. “People like Michael Aker are exactly the type of volunteers that make GreenCare for Troops a success,” explains Cindy Code, executive director of Project EverGreen. “Many military families are still unaware this program is available, and we want the Fort Hood community to know we have landscape contractors ready to be paired with families to help make a small positive difference in their lives.”
Five Brothers Lawn Care provides a wide range of services to the Copperas Cove community including tree and brush trimming, lawn, flower bed and garden installation, lawn maintenance, clean up, gutter cleaning, fertilizing, fencing and landscaping— and most services are eligible under the GreenCare for Troops program. Typical projects under the program include mowing, turf renovation and seasonal cleanup but work is ultimately dependent upon the families’ specific needs.
Aker said he streamlines the process for all his clients, with booking and payment available online at fivebrotherslawncare.com.
Aker said he’s not able to take on more families for this particular project, but he is using this chance to challeng other lawn care specialists to volunteer with Green-Care for Troops, especially in the local area.
Since Aker started offering services to GreenCare for Troops two years ago, he has provided lawn care for five different families.
The GreenCare For Troops initiative is currently looking for both military families that can benefit from free landscaping services. They are also looking for landscape contractors who want to give back to their communities.
For more information on the Green Care for Troops program, visit projectevergreen.org. To register either as a GreenCare for troops volunteer or a military family, visit: http://projectevergreen.org/login-register/.