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Gift of warmth: Veteran from Brookline gets free furnace

BROOKLINE, Pa. — For one local veteran, a thank you on this Veterans Day came with a gift of warmth.

After serving in Afghanistan and retiring from the military, decorated Army veteran Joe Dicianno and his wife settled into a new home in Brookline this summer.

"The furnace is about 22 or 23 years old.  Kind of on the fritz.  I saw an article that Gillece was trying to help veterans," said Dicianno.

"This is the first one that we're doing this year, and generally, we do a handful every year, so certainly slots are available," said Dan McConaha of Gillece.

Both the furnace and installation are free.  A typical furnace costs several thousand dollars.

"The furnace we're installing today is much more efficient than his existing furnace.  So moving forward, the family is going to see some savings with their fuel use," said McConaha.

Dicianno works as a job counselor with the Veterans Leadership program.

"This became a great networking opportunity," he said.

Gillece has a training program that helps put service men and women to work as skilled HVAC specialists.

WPXI

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