‘The best Christmas present’: Iraq War veteran gifted mortgage-free home in Central Texas

BELTON, Texas (KWTX) - An Iraq War veteran received a gift he never expected: a brand-new, mortgage-free home in Central Texas.

For years, he carried the weight of war. Today, he carries a special set of keys that opens the start of a new chapter.

Christopher Justinianio enlisted in the Army in 2008, saying he was motivated by a desire to honor his country.

“I gave up Princeton, Yale and Brown. I decided to join the infantry instead,” he said.

He was deployed to Iraq in 2009 and 2010. He came under fire and survived an explosion of a pickup truck next to his vehicle that caused a traumatic brain injury.

“There were times I thought, especially the second time I got blown up, I don’t think I’m going to make it home,” Justinianio said.

But he returned home and is now medically retired.

Yet, returning to his home country didn’t mean he was returning to a permanent home. For the past 15 years, Justinianio has not spent more than two years in any one state.

That changed today, as Justinianio and his fiancée, Jackie, opened the door to their brand-new, mortgage-free home in Belton.

“It’s just been everywhere. So, knowing that we can spend Christmas here, knowing that we can make friends here, and that it will last for as long as we stay here, I’m really excited about that,” he said.

Justinianio learned in August that he had been chosen as the recipient through Building Homes for Heroes, a national nonprofit that helps veterans.

“It took a while for me to actually believe it was really happening. I was completely blown away,” he said.

Five months later, he sat in a living room he hopes will see every milestone of his son’s childhood.

“I didn’t want him to never know a home, and now he knows: ‘This is where I grew up,’” Justinianio said.

The family received a warm welcome from the Belton community: cheerleaders, a marching band, remarks from Mayor Holmes and a flyover that Justinianio said he couldn’t believe he got to see in person.

“I didn’t think I would get this kind of thing being alive. I thought this would happen at my funeral or when I pass. I never thought I would live to see something so good,” he said.

Now, for the Justinianos, there truly is no place like home.

For more information about Building Homes for Heroes, visit the organization’s website.

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