Chapman ? Army Spc. Patrick Tutwiler was shot in the neck in Baghdad. Then while he was recovering at home, an F-4 scale tornado hit Chapman, destroying his house and dozens of others.

When his neighbors began rebuilding, Tutwiler, 24, was turned down for loans to finance a new home. He and his wife, four children and a nephew had to move into base housing at Fort Riley. But that would only be temporary because Tutwiler was getting discharged within three months.

Tutwiler’s luck started turning when “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” came to town, though that too was a little less than certain.

“Chapman is a small town and the advance team that visited was not certain that Chapman could pull it all together,” said Chapman City Attorney Doug Thompson. Thompson, though, knew better.

He e-mailed the show’s executive producer.

“I just told him the reasons why the show should take a good look at what Chapman could do,” Thompson said. A few nights later, the executive producer called.

One of the primary concerns was that the town of 1,400 east of Salina didn’t have a major builder that could serve as the primary builder for the project.

“I assured him that I knew the community, and that it’s a good community. We can do this,” Thompson said. “I knew we would be able to build a coalition that could make this happen.”

Within days of that call, the coalition was formed. Representatives of the show arrived in Chapman on Tuesday – Veterans Day. About 3,000 people asked to help.

The “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” project will include construction of a house for the Tutwilers, a new community center and remodeling of the park behind the tennis courts in town.

The Tutwiler family was scheduled to leave Wednesday for a cruise to the Bahamas while the construction is under way.

“I’ve never been to the beach, never been on vacation,” Tutwiler said.

When they return, the family – four children ranging in age from 6 months to 9, plus a 15-year-old nephew – will have a two-story home – and a reinforced concrete storm bunker.

“It feels like it’s a brand new start,” said Tutwiler’s wife, Crystal.

Salina builder Archie Ponton of Ponton’s Construction, is one of the contractors who volunteered his time for the projects. Ponton has worked on several homes in Chapman since the tornado, which hit June 11, destroying about 70 homes and killing one woman.

“It was time to give something back,” he said.

Helping a wounded veteran and his family, the show’s cast and crew said, is an honor. The family was chosen from a list of finalists suggested by townspeople.

“We have thousands of people apply to the show every week, but this family was an easy decision,” said Michael Moloney, the show’s in-house designer.

The family returns from their cruise Tuesday, when their new home will be completed.