Doosan Bobcat donates equipment to veteran

Doosan Bobcat North America, West Fargo, N.D., in partnership with Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP), recently presented U.S. Army veteran Andrew Long with a new Bobcat® R-Series T76 compact track loader and 80-in. bucket attachment, together valued at nearly $90,000.

The two organizations teamed up at Piedmont Bobcat, the local Bobcat dealer near where Long lives in North Carolina, to personally deliver the machine to the veteran. He also received a framed photograph featuring his new machine and all 45 of the Doosan Bobcat employees who had a hand in assembling it, along with their signatures.

Long was randomly chosen as the winner from a pool of candidates and says the T76 will speed up the process of refurbishing the decades-old former tobacco farm he and his fiancée recently purchased in Elon, N.C. Click here to watch a video of Long receiving the equipment. As a veteran, Long says he is excited to give back to the military community as well.

“The Bobcat T76 compact track loader is a beautiful machine,” said Long. “I have so many projects I want to get started on right away. I hope to support local veterans, either by hiring and teaching them or working with veteran-owned businesses. I want my farm to be a relaxing place for veterans to be understood and respected. Now that I have this machine, my vision for this property will come together much faster and transform my property into a sanctuary for my fellow warriors.”

Long, a native of Branchburg, N.J., served in the U.S. Army from 2010 to 2014, including a deployment to Afghanistan. Returning home with post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury as a result of his service, Long found support with WWP, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving injured veterans and their families, which helped him with his recovery.

Paired with the bucket attachment, the T76 will help Long reclaim his fields, lay down gravel for the roads around the farm and repair the property’s pond. He plans to use the land to grow vegetables, maintain an orchard and start a chicken egg operation. Long said the T76 also will be useful in tilling, grading and clearing fields, digging irrigation and drainage ditches, and moving hay bales, animal feed and other materials.

“Giving away a new Bobcat T76 compact track loader is just one way we can thank someone who has given so much to our country,” said Mike Ballweber, president of Doosan Bobcat North America. “As a company that has many employees and dealers who are U.S. veterans, we have a tremendous amount of respect for those who have bravely put their lives on the line, so Doosan Bobcat was proud to honor Andrew for his service and sacrifice.”