Operation Playhouse: Acacia Gives Back to Local Veterans

By Lisa Crewe | Posted on June 23, 2023

For the second year in a row, Acacia had the honor of participating in an amazing program for veteran families called “Operation Playhouse” where our employees built, painted and decorated a themed playhouse for the children of a local veteran. This program, which is run by the Habitat for Humanity Metro West/Greater Worcester, is designed to give back to veterans and military members living in New England and thank them for their service to our country. Children of veterans are often left with a one-parent household and have to cope with feelings of loss and uncertainty. The playhouses provide a special place for family members to bond, play, dream, and think in a “home of their own.”

This year’s recipients of the Acacia-built playhouse were the Frappier Family from Connecticut, whose two boys aged 2 years and 3 months selected a log cabin theme for their dream home. Their Dad, Nathan Frappier, is an active military member of the U.S. Air Force who served in combat during Operation Noble Eagle 2020, Operation Noble Eagle 2022, and T32 AGR. Recognized for his expertise and bravery, Nathan was awarded the Air Force Achievement Medal for Operation Noble Eagle 2020.

Here are a few pictures of Nathan accepting the playhouse for his boys.

“When we built our first playhouse last year, we knew instantly we wanted to do it again when we saw the joy it brought to the children,” said Victoria Fernandez, Principal Corporate Counsel at Cisco, supporting the Acacia business. “When a veteran is serving our country to keep us free and safe, it’s the entire family that has to sacrifice and they deserve to be recognized, rewarded and thanked. I know I speak for the entire team when I say we had a lot of fun building and customizing this new playhouse and adding the finishing touches and toys that made the log cabin really come to life.”

Here’s a picture of the Acacia team who built the cabin in the parking lot of our office at Mill and Main in Maynard, Massachusetts.

Thanks to Cisco for Being a Long Time Supporter
Cisco is a long-time supporter of Habitat for Humanity. Since the 1990s, the company has donated more than $18.1 million to Habitat for Humanity in cash and products to support the development of homes for very low-income families in need of a place called home.  As part of its Operation Playhouse sponsorship, Acacia, now part of Cisco, raised more than $3000.  We encourage employees and friends to build a playhouse or donate to Habitat for Humanity to bring more playhouses to our local veteran families.

Thanks to the Frappier Family
On behalf of Acacia and Cisco, we want to say thank you to the Frappier family for all you have done to help protect our freedom. We hope your children enjoy their log cabin as much as our team enjoyed building it.