Decades ago, thousands of Americans were drafted by the US government to fight for their country with their lives.
It was not easy. They sacrificed so much of themselves to protect the American people. And some even paid with their lives.
77-year-old John Holaday, who served in the US-Vietnam War from 1965 to 1967, was lucky enough to come home alive. Unfortunately, life has been tough on him and he currently lived on a $1,300/month salary. And when the job he had, setting up kiddie carnivals, was shut down because of the pandemic, he had no income anymore.
This was a big problem since John’s home was deemed unlivable by the local health department and wanted to remove him from the home.
“No running water, no power, no sewage, no drywall,” Nathan Jones of the Delaware County Veterans Affairs Office said when he inspected Holaday’s home.
“There’s no flooring. There’s no sheeting for flooring. There [are] some joists there. There [are] obviously bones for the walls and things like that, but there is no drywall, no carpet. There is no electricity to even see these things.”
Holaday said serving in and losing his friends to the war was more difficult than these living conditions.
But the health department wouldn’t budge.
“They had every right to want to do that to protect his health,” Jones said.
Holaday was aware that his house needed to be repaired. And he had saved up for it. But the contractor he hired ran off with the money instead.
That’s when Holaday turned to the VA office for support, where he talked to Jones about his problem.
Jones sympathized with Holaday’s story and wanted to do more for him.
So he wrote their Facebook page to ask for help from the community.
“We are asking for any assistance from any contractor, house repair or any other organization that would be willing to offer help to a veteran in need. We have a 77-year-old Vietnam combat veteran who is struggling to get his home livable. Any resources or services that you can provide would be greatly appreciated and can help this veteran,” Jones wrote on Facebook.
And the page’s followers just kept sending them messages, asking how they can donate.
So many people also shared the post and wanted to donate money. Jones had to create a GoFundMe page to make it happen.
“Within 48 hours or so, we had a lot of contributions coming in and one primarily large, large contribution coming in from an organization called Providing Hope VA. This gentleman out of South Carolina actually donated $30,000 to help fund building this house,” Jones said.
There was even a faith-based organization that donated around $12,000 to $13,000 worth of materials.
Plus there were businesses and individuals who donated furniture, hardware, toiletries, and even Christmas decorations for Holaday.
The response was just amazing!
Jones also partnered with the local schools, Muncie Area Career Center, and the building trade class to perform the repairs. Since they had to tear the house down and completely rebuild it, they expected it’ll take them a couple of months to finish.
They ended up delivering the finished product 67 days later right before Christmas.
And when Holaday came up to the house during the big reveal, he began to sob.
Everyone who helped with his house repairs was present to welcome him home.
“Welcome home!” they all shouted. “You were there for us, so we’re here for you. You sacrificed for us, so we’re sacrificing for you.”
Holaday was excited and speechless. He could not believe how much effort the community has made for him.
“It’s hard to put into words,” Holaday said. “It’s a blessing everybody went that extra mile for me.”
Even his niece, Maggie, with whom he reunited recently after more than a decade, was overwhelmed with gratitude.
“Thank you very much from the bottom of our heart,” Maggie said. “Not only John but our family thanks you for helping take him off the street and provide him with a warm and wonderful home.”
Jones was so grateful for the experience that he plans to put up his own foundation for veterans. This foundation will focus on building homes for veterans in Delaware County.
Watch the video below to learn more about how this small community kept this Army vet from going homeless.
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