Local veterans are concerned they may not receive services after a backhoe crashed into the main floor of the Beaver Street Veterans Villas on Tuesday.
The place had to be boarded up.
Action News Jax spoke with one veteran at the center about how the crash and delay will impact veterans.
“She said, 'A car just ran into the building,' and I said, 'Oh my God no!'” Army veteran Calvin Reed said.
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Reed got that call Tuesday morning. He was at doctor’s appointment but rushed home to the Beaver Street Veterans Villas.
“It was glass and wood and all kind of debris all over the place,” Reed said.
That’s because the large tractor had crashed through the front door. Witnesses say the crash involved a small car as well and somehow the tractor ended up hitting the building.
The crash is now delaying the arrival of services from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and other resources such as medical services, mental health counseling and job and life skills training, all things to help veterans as they transition from homelessness.
The center is run by the Clara White Mission.
“They were all due and ready to move in but of course that's not gonna happen because of what happened here today,” said Rosa Nicholas, with the Clara White Mission.
The second and third floors of the center are filled with 16 apartments. They are places where veterans can rest and cook their own meals.
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“Giving me an opportunity to see myself prosper again and be upright and be a productive citizen again … I can’t put it into words. It’s just been a godsend,” Reed said.
A new home that Reed and others can still live in after the crash, but the convenience of having valuable resources just downstairs is now on hold.
“We’ll still be able to get it, just be a little more hectic than, you know, instead of everything being in one place,” Reed said.
Cox Media Group
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