PORTLAND, Maine — The Travis Mills Foundation announced on Friday that its plane pull fundraising event last month at the Portland Jetport brought in $156,478.
Teams of 20 to 25 people had a chance to grab a rope and pull an 80-ton 757 plane as fast as they could.
"Eighty tons? No big deal! I pull that in my sleep," Travis Mills, founder of the Travis Mills Foundation joked.
Mills is a retired U.S. Army staff sergeant and recalibrated warrior, who lost both his arms and legs while on tour in Afghanistan. The Travis Mills Foundation was started in 2013 by Mills and his wife to help veterans like Mills and their families who have lost limbs while serving in the U.S. armed forces.
Mills explained, "We bring in families that have been physically injured through combat and we show them how to do things adaptively with their loved ones: spouses, children, etc. And show them that life still goes on. Don't live life on the sidelines. Be active in your community. Active in your society."
Among the teams of participants was a group that consisted of veterans who have benefitted from the foundation.
"I got a whole team from a recalibrated team so guys flew in," said Mills. "Men and women that flew in from all across the nation with no arms, no legs, that are the Travis Mills Foundation personal team."
"Even though it's the Travis Mills Foundation, it's everybody out there giving back, volunteering, donating, and helping us give back to these families," said Mills.
According to foundation spokesperson Molly Lovell-Keely, they recently broke ground on a Health and Wellness Center in an effort to schedule year-round programming for veterans and their families.