Fulton County Ohio Media

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Texas born and Ohio raised, United States Army veteran Brandon Walberg of Swanton was recognized for his military service as a Hometown Hero by USA Insulation of Toledo.  Brandon was nominated by his wife Alyssa who sent in his story to the company’s nominating committee who then unanimously agreed he should be duly recognized.  With this honor came a free home insulation package from USA Insulation which was accomplished in just several hours by a crew of 12 skilled employees.  “We’re really happy to be here.  It’s been a really great experience so far,” remarked Christy Bacurin, USA Installation Representative.  “The first thing they’re going to notice when we leave here today is the noise reduction and then from there, they should be able to see 30-50 percent on their utilities back.  The return on investment is huge,” she added.  Of course, for the Walberg family, it is a gift that keeps on giving.

Brandon’s military story began almost immediately after he graduated from Sylvania Southview High School in 2008 when he enlisted in the Army and was sent to Fort Leonard Wood Combat Training Installation in the Missouri Ozarks.  Upon graduation he was assigned to Fort Hood (renamed Fort Cavazos in May of 2023) in Texas then deployed to Iraq for four months as an engineer.  “At that point we pretty much convoyed everywhere and built bridges,” said Brandon.  “We cross-trained with combat engineers and were either clearing roads or building bridges.  There are surprisingly a lot of bridges in Iraq.” 

He returned to Fort Hood for 18 months and was subsequently redeployed back to Iraq in May of 2011 for eight months, leaving to come home on Christmas Eve of that year.  “It was hot.  The temperature would reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit,” said Brandon explaining the summertime conditions he worked under.  After returning to Fort Hood, he was transferred to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio and reassigned to a unit assisting with military funerals.

Six years removed from his enlistment, Brandon received his honorable discharge from the US Army, returned to Toledo and enrolled at Lourdes University, eventually earning a Bachelor’s of Education.  Following his student teaching at Pike-Delta-York Schools, he took a position as a math teacher at Rogers High School where he is still today.  Somewhere in between he married Alyssa Gombash and they now have two beautiful little girls, Renee aged three and Lyla aged six months.

USA Insulation does one Hometown Hero Giveaway in Northwest Ohio every year and they literally make it a community event, encouraging friends, family and neighbors to stop by and help celebrate the moment.  CK Sweets Coffee and Bakeshop of Swanton, owned by Kat and Derek Kania, provided a great assortment of pastries and coffee for the guests and the crew.  Just two years ago, coincidentally, Derek, a long-time and still active duty member of the Ohio Air National Guard 180^th Tactical Fighter Wing based at Toledo Express Airport, was the recipient of the this same generous gift.

Photo: Brandon and Alyssa Walberg with Christy Bacurin of USA Insulation