The Warrior Legacy Ranch was founded out of one Marine platoon’s powerful connection and need for a place to gather. During COVID-19, 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, Weapons Company CAAT Platoon reconnected on Zoom more than 17 years after returning from Afghanistan. Through the efforts of Patrick Jump and Jesse Bergeron, the group began meeting online every other Saturday, and those conversations grew into the mental health support and healing many needed. An in-person reunion in 2021 proved life-changing for all involved.
Jump and Bergeron recognized the need for a family-friendly, affordable gathering place for veterans and their families to hold retreats. Jump found the ideal location in Robertsdale, Alabama, located in Baldwin County, where veterans make up 11% of the population. Using his own funds, he purchased 20 acres and created the non-profit Warrior Legacy Ranch (WLR). Then Jump and Bergeron stretched every donated dollar to build a 900 sq. ft. patio, a pergola, a therapeutic community garden, and a sign marking WLR’s existence.
Jump installed the sign himself. With no running water on the property, Jump knew that concrete footings for the sign would not be practical. Plus, Robertsdale’s sandy soil punishes concrete, causing cracks and early disintegration. At Lowes, he found the building code-compliant Fast 2K Post Anchor for setting posts; a lighter, cleaner, and faster method than concrete. After digging the holes and prepping the posts, Jump mixed Fast 2K in the bag using the simple “shoeshine” method for 30 seconds and poured it around each post. Each post took under five minutes to install. Three days later, the installation was tested by a strong windstorm, and the new sign did not move an inch.
Just 12 months later, WLR expanded programming to include equine-assisted learning for veterans. The project included wood-framed wire fencing for the horse enclosure, requiring 110 fenceposts. For the WLR team, the biggest challenge with the project was the labor needed to build out the horse area. Many WLR volunteers are older or disabled so using 8,000 lbs. of concrete was out of the question. Jump again turned to Fast 2K as the solution. Jump contacted Strategic Marketing Manager Kristin McLinn at H.B. Fuller, manufacturer of Fast 2K, to ask if the company might help with product cost. McLinn noted, “We instantly found Warrior Legacy Ranch’s story compelling, and it perfectly aligns with our in-kind donation program,” McLinn said. “We were happy to provide Fast 2K Post Anchor to help build the equine learning enclosure.”
Though heavy rains and cold initially delayed the fence installation, on the first nice weekend, Jump enlisted his family and a few volunteers to place the 110 posts. The lightweight Fast 2K bags contained everything needed. The WLR team quickly mixed and poured Fast 2K around each leveled post. Setting was completed in just 3–5 minutes, and posts were ready for fence wire within 15–30 minutes of installation. Even Jump’s 9-year-old son quickly mastered the “shoeshine” mixing method for the bags. With no need to brace the posts, the group finished installing all 110 posts in just one weekend. WLR hired professionals to place the fence wire, and they were impressed that the posts remained perfectly straight even after the high-tension application of the wire.
As Jump put it, “The post installation could not have been easier thanks to Fast 2K Post Anchor. I would go so far as to say the work team, from 9 years old to 70+ years young, had fun using the product.”
About the Author: The Fast 2K Team shares installation tips, project inspiration, and product insights to help contractors and homeowners complete outdoor post projects more quickly and efficiently.