TERELLA BROWN: The Army soldier and single mother, who’s dedicated to helping her community and neighbors, this year was on the receiving end, finding a winter wonderland in her front yard when she arrived home from work, thanks to FPL volunteers working with the Florida National Guard. PHOTO COURTESY OF FPL

Staff Report

MARGATE, Fla. – Neighbors stared in awe outside of Terella Brown’s home, wondering who had sneaked into the U.S. Army soldier’s yard while she was at work.

A troupe of “elves” wearing green shirts and Santa hats had arrived with a bucket truck, thousands of LED lights and energy efficient décor, to surprise the Brown family by transforming their home into a winter wonderland.

In the 12 years she’s lived here, Brown has never decorated her home for the holidays. The single mother always spread holiday cheer in a different way: Each year she and her daughters adopt a family in need and shower them with gifts and homecooked meals.

This year the tables turned, and Brown found herself on the receiving end of a heartwarming gesture: a holiday makeover made possible by Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) employees who coordinated with the Florida National Guard and volunteered their evening to decorate the soldier’s home.

When Brown arrived home with her four daughters and two grandsons, as young as seven months old, they were welcomed with open arms and personalized gifts. Brown’s four-year-old grandson was jumping for joy, anticipating his upcoming birthday celebration in the adorned home.

“She’s always helping the less fortunate,” one of her neighbors said. “She truly deserves this. It makes me so happy to see her honored.”

After several deployments with the Army National Guard, Brown remains an active member running the 138th Transportation Company, a mediumtruck company within the Florida National Guard Unit. During the pandemic, her unit was assigned to support Florida’s COVID-19 response on the southwest coast.

The holiday makeover is an annual tradition for FPL, honoring local heroes for their commitment to the nation and their communities. For the 16th year in a row this year, FPL volunteers surprised veterans and their families from the panhandle to the Space Coast to South Florida, transforming homes into beacons of hope and celebration.

“It feels so good to give back, especially during this time of year, to make a veteran happy,” Shashayne Maxwell, an FPL employee who volunteered for the makeover, said. “It’s great to see the look on their faces when they come home, so surprised and happy that someone thought of them.”

“This is truly going to be a Christmas to remember,” exclaimed Brown upon arriving to the festive scene. “We always take pictures out here, but now we have this behind us that we’ll display for years.”