Joint Base Lewis-McChord Staff Sgt. Marshall Diaz and his family will be the first recipients from the west coast to benefit from the North American Deck and Railing Association's Deck For A Soldier program.

The nonprofit NADRA's program, which it started in 2007, pairs private builders and vendors who want to make a difference in military families' lives. The local vendors that participate in Washington make up the Western Washington Chapter.

"NADRA's Deck For A Soldier Program is a charitable outreach dedicated to providing decks free of charge to returning men and women of the Armed Forces in appreciation of their service to their country," said Kate Royer, operations manger of Screw Products who also serves as co-chair for the project.

Projects are completed with donated materials, time and labor.  The members of the Washington chapter broke ground for the project by starting the Diaz family project in Lacey on March 24. They plan to complete the project in time for a ribbon cutting ceremony on Memorial Day, May 30.

"We had each of our builders design a deck around what the Diaz family wanted and then they got to pick and adjust the final plans," Royer said.

Diaz has been honorably serving his country for 13 years and is currently on active duty. During his last deployment in Afghanistan, he was wounded and medically evacuated back to the United States. He was in the Warrior Transition Battalion at JBLM from May 2008 to April 2010. He has received many prestigious awards during his career, including a Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

Diaz was given the opportunity to be discharged from the Army after sustaining his injuries, but instead chose to continue to serve his country.

"Although my rehabilitation is an ongoing process, I hold my head up with pride," he said in a release issued by NADRA. "There is no other country in this world that I would rather live in than the United States of America."

The WWC NADRA members called to congratulate applicant Diaz on his selection for the project in November.

Military members interested in applying for the Deck For A Soldier Project can apply through www.nadra.org.  Applicants must own their own home, have a certain number of service awards, must be in active service with the Armed Forces in the last 2-4 years, not have an existing deck, or have one that is less than 150 sq. ft. and at least 10 years old. There must also be readily available access to property - subject to on-site review

Additionally, a picture of the house must be submitted, and it must be in the participating vendors' serviceable area. A candidate's property must have setback requirements and surface available to complete the project. It is not limited to wounded servicemembers.