Ryan Hulon is our RSVP Project Director for Anderson County. Rebuild Upstate is a recipient of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) Senior Corps Grant, which enables our organization to encourage individuals over the age of 55 to volunteer in repairing the homes of neighbors in need. Ryan is responsible for recruiting volunteers across Anderson County during the grant award year while raising awareness for the RSVP program. He’s also a retired Army veteran.
Ryan joined the Army in 1997. He went to airborne school right after advanced infantry training. From there, he was stationed at Fort Bragg in 1998, deployed for the first time to Kosovo in 1999, and later to Egypt and Israel. After 9/11, Ryan was deployed once to Afghanistan and twice to Iraq. Following Hurricane Katrina, he was deployed to New Orleans to assist with hurricane relief efforts. By 2010, he had medically retired from military service.
This Veterans Day, we’re highlighting Ryan’s life of service, not only to our country, but also to the neighbors and homeowners he helps us serve daily.
What stands out about the experience of your role, not the government or AmeriCorps side, but just the role itself, the relationships?
I think just having those guys who have retired or some who are just getting ready to retire, but are volunteering their time to come out and help our neighbors to have a safe and accessible home. I mean, some of these guys put in almost a thousand hours a year, and that’s just unbelievable…that they dedicate that kind of time and effort and their talents to helping the community.
Why do you think that kind of service and dedication is important?
Because we couldn’t do it without them. Without the volunteers, without some of their technical knowledge, we couldn’t do the amount of houses we do and the projects we do in a timely manner. It’s imperative we have those volunteers working alongside us so that we can complete our projects.
Where did your handyman experience growing up come from? When did that begin?
I grew up on a farm. I started working on the farm a lot when I was 10 years old. I always did something with construction, did a lot of electrical work, a lot of HVAC work, helped my uncle build his house. So I always just had the time and played with power tools.
What were some other work experiences you had?
Working with the infantry, I would say you get a lot of all-over work experience because most of the time, we were off on our own to fend for oursrlves. We had to construct our own bunkers, our own pretty much everything. Most of the time they put us in a town with nothing and we’d have to create our own structures. We would pull power in from somewhere in the town, we would help with trying to get fresh water to where we were. You kind of had to be a jack-of-all trades because you were out on your own so much.
Coming back to civilian life, what did you decide would be the best use of your time? How did you find another purpose post-service?
Coming back to civilian life, I started out for eight years as a firefighter. I quickly realized that my body was pretty broken from the military and that I could not do that anymore, so I got into the non-profit world. From there, it was really just kind of fine-tuning to where I could find an organization that it meant a lot for me to give my heart, my time, and my efforts. And this is the job that I landed in that I love.
Why is our service to veterans so important to you as a veteran yourself?
That’s important to me as a veteran because I had to cut through the red tape to get my retirement when I got out. The VA is notorious for being difficult to work with and actually access benefits. For me to be able to go out and help other veterans means I can help them cut through that same red tape for things that they really need, like a ramp, like a walk-in shower, like a new roof. We’re actively working with a veteran right now to help with getting a ramp for them so he can get in and out of his home safely. And also we have veterans who serve on our handyman club that I get to work with.
You’ve quite literally dedicated your whole life to service. Why is that?
I served in the military. It was, a little different, but we were overseas serving people. Then, when I got out, I was a volunteer firefighter serving people in a different way. Now, I get to serve my community in a totally different way. I’ve just always been trying to help people get a hand up, not a hand out.
Ryan closes us out with the quote he says he lives by: “Live for something or die for nothing.” — John Rambo.
We’re celebrating veterans like Ryan this Veterans Day. Rebuild Upstate has repaired the homes of more than 177 Veterans since 2006, and will continue serving those who have served.
One of the best ways to honor a veteran today is to give a gift in honor of them. If that interests you, you can give a gift in honor of a veteran here.
Thank you so much for helping us continue to serve our neighbors.
