RINCON — The pain that has followed Miranda Briggs like a shadow the last few years was interrupted by a sunny Thursday morning surprise.
Briggs and her daughter, Essex, were greeted at a new Raindance homesite by about 100 members of the community. Tears glistened in the young widow’s eyes as she realized she was being given the “Home for a Hero” by Operation Finally Home, a nonprofit that provides mortgage-free houses to veterans, first responders and their families.
Briggs’ husband, U.S. Army Ranger Garrett Briggs, died from PTSD complications just two weeks after Essex was born in 2018. The cause of death left his family in limbo as they were denied some military and insurance benefits.
Miranda was virtually speechless immediately after she got out of a car driven by Molly Halliday, Operation Finally Home’s vice president of marketing. They were led to 248 Lillian Street by a lengthy parade of vehicles from the Rincon Police Department, Effingham County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia State Patrol.
“This is a day that no one will soon forget,” said Ali Heavener, Lennar division manager. Lennar is constructing the house, one of 16 it has constructed for Operation Finally Home.
Heavener thanked numerous supporters of the project before eventually turning the home dedication ceremony over to Halliday.
“(Miranda) truly encompasses so much of the community we serve,” Halliday said. “... You are so deserving of this mortgage-free home.”
In addition to being a widow, Miranda, is a first responder. She has worked for Savannah Fire and Emergency Services, and the State of Georgia on Jekyll Island.
Halliday drove Miranda and Essex to the site under false pretenses. They thought they were meeting with Operation Finally Home and Lennar representatives as the next step in the approval process.
Instead, they were told there was a “location change.” The family was then driven to Raindance where it was shocked to see a framed house covered with “notes of love” from the community. Messages included, “Welcome to the neighborhood. We can’t wait to meet you.”
“I can’t thank you guys enough. It’s not very often that I don’t have words to say but this is overwhelming to say the very least,” Miranda said. “... One of the biggest things that (Garrett and I) wanted for our daughter was to have stability and have a home, and things. We dreamed of that for her future and I feel this is such a weight lifted ...”
Miranda, who married Garrett in 2015, noted that military members who commit suicide don’t receive the same benefits as those killed in action. She created the Fight the War Within Foundation, a nonprofit seeking to connect people with mental health resources in their communities.
In its first year, the nonprofit put $35,000 back into the community to assist those struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts. She is determined to help bring change to the mental health care system for all people, but namely for active-duty personnel and veterans.
In 2021, Miranda returned to her work as an EMT/firefighter. She has completed numerous levels of training, including airport firefighter and haz-mat technician, and is certified as a crisis intervention instructor for Armed Forces Mission’s The intervene Challenge Course.
Learn more about Miranda’s foundation at https://fightthewarwithin.org/about/.
