SPRINGVILLE, Utah -(Ammoland.com)- In response to devastating damage from Hurricane Matthew competitive shooters from across the country have combined forces with two local Utah businesses to help veteran Marine Staff Sergeant Amy Dillon whose South Carolina home was severely damaged by flooding from Hurricane Matthew.
Dillon, a 12 year veteran of the Marine Corps and former Drill Instructor at MCRD Parris Island is but the latest in her family’s long history of service in the US military.
Her grandfather joined the Navy in the Philippines and was lost in 1942 during the battle of the Java Sea. Her father followed in his footsteps, also serving in the Navy, earning US citizenship and emigrating here.
This makes Dillon the 3rd generation of her family to serve in the military but the 1st to be born in the U.S.
She works full time as a firearms instructor for Palmetto State Armory and devotes much of her free time to organizations that advocate for gun rights and veteran’s causes.
A partial list of the organizations she volunteers with include the DC Project, SC Carry, GA Carry, US Concealed Carry Association, Veteran’s Advocacy Services, and Samaritan’s Purse.
Hurricane Matthew devastated Dillon’s South Carolina neighborhood, and she — like many of her neighbors — did not carry flood insurance as they were not located in a flood zone.
Several days of standing water destroyed nearly everything in her home. Clothing, furniture, cabinets, appliances, even treasured personal items like her service uniforms were a complete loss.
The floors had to be stripped to bare concrete and even the walls have had to have the drywall stripped from the floor up four feet to allow for drying and mold remediation.
To top things off, thanks to health concerns the home has been declared unsuitable for occupancy until drying and mold remediation are complete.
At the urging of several friends Dillon has set up a campaign on the website GoFundMe.com so those who are so-inclined can provide financial assistance to help her rebuild. Utah competitive shooter Brian Holcomb — a long-time friend — has taken it upon himself to help boost her fundraising efforts.
Holcomb, with the help of two Utah businesses and competitive shooters from across the country, has organized a raffle to help raise funds for Dillon.
The prize is a custom AR-15 rifle built entirely from parts donated by shooters across the nation, including scope, case and other accessories with an approximate retail value of $2,000.
South Jordan, Utah, company Vigilante Arms is performing a custom Cerakote paint job done in Dillon’s favorite colors, crimson and grey while Springville-based Rangemasters of Utah is hosting the drawing and will handle the legalities of transferring the rifle to the prize winner, including background checks and shipping to an authorized dealer in the state of the winner’s residence.
In order to assist Staff Sgt Dillon and enter the raffle, donations should be made to her GoFundMe campaign:
https://www.gofundme.com/amydillon
Every $25 donated will be one raffle entry.
In order to enter the raffle entrants must forward their receipt from GoFundMe to the following email address:
ADillonBenefitRaffle@Gmail.com
A confirmation email will be sent.
A Facebook page has been setup as the primary source of information for everything related to the fundraising effort.
https://www.facebook.com/AmyDillonBenefitRaffle
It should be noted that the prize rifle will not be compliant with any state-level restrictions on so-called “assault weapons” or magazine capacity restrictions.
Entrants should check their local laws before entry as entries from states where the prize rifle is prohibited will not be valid.
Ownership of the prize rifle will be transferred by a federally-authorized firearms dealer in accordance with all applicable laws including background check requirements.