MAPEI and the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) have formed an exclusive partnership to assist the Gary Sinise Foundation’s Restoring Independence, Supporting Empowerment (R.I.S.E.) program.

MAPEI and the NTCA will provide tile and tile installation systems where needed in the construction of one-of-a-kind specially adapted custom smart homes that the Gary Sinise Foundation has committed to building for our nation’s most severely wounded heroes.

The R.I.S.E. program was first brought to the attention of the construction industry by the National Wood Flooring Foundation (NWFA) as part of the “Play it Forward” theme for its 2015 NWFA expo. NTCA, under the leadership of Bart Bettiga, executive director, discussed the program with NWFA colleagues, and arranged for NTCA to provide the tiling needs for flooring and wall coverings, particularly in kitchens and bathrooms.

“NWFA started the ball rolling on a meaningful contribution our industry associations can make to the health and independence of our returning veterans who have been severely injured,” said Bettiga. “NTCA, with contributions of tile from various tile manufacturers and installation materials from MAPEI, is proud to strengthen this contribution as a way of telling our veterans how proud we are of them.”

Jeff Johnson, MAPEI’s business manager for floor covering installation systems, added, “As part of our civic commitment, MAPEI has long been an ardent sponsor of sports such as the UCI Road World Cycling Championships, and arts and cultural programs such as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum’s recent Alberto Burri exhibition. Gary Sinise Foundation’s R.I.S.E. program has provided us with the honor of helping some of our heroic veterans in situations where our products can be of direct benefit to them.”

For more information, visit garysinisefoundation.org/programs/rise.