Tulsa Businessman Honored For Helping Veterans

The memory of a firefighter who lost his life at Ground Zero on 911 inspired a foundation called Building for America's Bravest. Volunteers build smart homes for service members who are catastrophically injured in the line of duty.

The group honored a Tulsa businessman for his support Monday. Paul Johnson owns Tulsa's four Carpet One stores. Johnson has committed to providing the flooring for 46 of the veteran smart homes.

Retired New York Fire Department Lieutenant Raymond Thomas gave Johnson a specially-designed shadowbox containing steel from Ground Zero.

"Those folks may have been sitting in their fire houses, been out doing different things and they responded to the call," said Paul Johnson, owner of Carpet One. "It's our way of recognizing first responders in the Tulsa area."

Thomas was not on duty on September 11th, but went to the scene and helped with rescue and recovery. Every member of his Ladder Company 118 died.