ROGERS -- When Aaron Mankin joined The Bobby Bones Show for an interview Monday, he thought the topic was set.
Mankin, a medically retired Marine Corps corporal from Rogers, expected the discussion to focus on his recovery after being severely wounded in Iraq.
Mankin suffered devastating injuries, and his face was disfigured in a 2005 bombing. The former combat correspondent, who's undergone more than 70 surgeries, expected to just tell his story to the audience of Bones' live and nationally syndicated country music and talk radio program.
But Mankin said Wednesday that Bones, who's from Arkansas, took the conversation in another direction, saying the show had chosen Mankin and wanted to build him a house.
"I'm surprised by the whole thing," Mankin said Wednesday at the home of his father, Steve. "I know that my community has always supported me. It's exciting."
Bones told Mankin that the show is working with Building Homes for Heroes to provide funding to construct a mortgage-free house for Mankin and his two children, ages 16 and 14.
A clearly surprised and emotional Mankin wiped tears from his eyes and thanked Bones on the show.
"Let us take it from here," Bones said during the broadcast. "Again, you've done so much. You've been through so much. It's the least that we can do. We will be in touch very soon, my friend. Thank you again."
Mankin was about three months into his tour of duty on May 11, 2005, when an improvised explosive device detonated under the 26-ton amphibious assault vehicle he was riding in. The blast killed six Marines and injured a dozen others. In addition to his facial wounds, Mankin suffered severe damage to his throat and lungs from smoke inhalation and intense burns to more than 25% of his body.
Mankin said he was a correspondent -- "at the tip of the spear" -- reporting what happened on the front lines.
"Losing your face and identity, looking in the mirror and not seeing yourself, I never fathomed that," Mankin said Wednesday.
He became the first patient of the Operation Mend program, a partnership of UCLA Medical Center, the U.S. military and the Department of Veterans Affairs to help heal the wounds of war. The program provides advanced surgical and medical treatment for post-9/11-era service members, veterans and their families at no cost to them.
"You can't say thanks enough," Mankin said. "You can't be grateful enough."
Mankin, 41,a former congressional veterans liaison for the 3rd District, said he's currently helping nonprofit groups and doing advocacy work on behalf of veterans, including responding to those facing a crisis.
"I've kind of put myself out there, to be available to be a conduit for services," Mankin said. "Every day is a victory. Every day is a battle, but it's an opportunity to win again. As long as you win the day, you'll be fine."
Kim Valdyke, the director of construction for Building Homes for Heroes, said that D.R. Horton is to build the home and that the cost of houses for veterans varies based on the veteran's needs. Building Homes for Heroes has gifted around 340 homes across the country, including ground-up builds and renovations, said Valdyke, who's from a military family.
"To know that we're helping those who need it, because the military is so close to my heart, it just means everything to me," Valdyke said. "We've just been working to find the right builder, the right area to be able to build him a home."
Valdyke said veterans have to apply for the house program and be vetted and approved.
Mankin said he's a single dad. His children have the same interests as typical teenagers, including video games and fashion, he said. Having a home to call their own has drawn their interest as well.
"They're excited to get into their rooms, have their own space and get on with their young lives," Mankin said.
Mankin said there are two floor plans to choose from. But one decision has already been made.
"I told them I need to be in Rogers," said Mankin, a 2000 graduate of Rogers High School. "That's home. If things go right, we'll be in a home -- my own home -- come the next spring."
Steve shares Mankin's happiness.
"Dads do two things: provide and protect," Steve Mankin said. "In his incident, I couldn't do either. The home provides him something I couldn't, which vividly demonstrates just how blessed we are as a family. Only the Lord can turn a tragedy into a testimony."
Aaron Mankin looks on, Wednesday, June 7, 2023 at his father’s house in Rogers. Aaron Mankin, a Marine from Rogers wounded in Iraq in 2005, who had his face disfigured and had 70 surgeries, was given a mortgage-free home with funding from Building Homes for Heroes and the Bobby Bones Show. Visit nwaonline.com/photos for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Charlie Kaijo)
Aaron Mankin and his father Steve pose for a portrait, Wednesday, June 7, 2023 at his Steve’s house in Rogers. Aaron Mankin, a Marine from Rogers wounded in Iraq in 2005, who had his face disfigured and had 70 surgeries, was given a mortgage-free home with funding from Building Homes for Heroes and the Bobby Bones Show. Visit nwaonline.com/photos for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Charlie Kaijo)