Soldiers returning home to the very soil that once promised freedom, liberty, and justice for all, often find themselves faced with a depth of emotional and mental imprisonment inflicted by war and the biased judgment of citizens of the very society for which they have risked their lives.
The Veterans Center of Hope concentrates all efforts on rebuilding the future of these returning soldiers, while fostering a family-like environment uniting wisdom, guidance, and direction within a safe, compassionate, and loving atmosphere. Designed specifically for the integrative purposes of readjustment into civilian life, the Veterans Center of Hope works to reestablish each veteran's self assurance while providing a means of assimilation back into American society.
The Veterans Center of Hope is currently in the planning stages. Without the assistance of government funding, the center will offer classroom instruction, on-the-job training, counseling, motivational seminars, as well as housing, and job placement to returning veterans. Funds provided by private and parochial contributors compensate for the cost of facilities, maintenance, and operating costs.
The very principles upon which our nation was founded are honorably commemorated in the organization's emblem, signifying strength, purpose, and direction, while venerating reliance upon God and constituting freedom through supplemental resources.
We reside in Natchitoches, Louisiana, which is a historic community. Centrally located in our community there stands a landmark cotton mill which is part of the cultural heritage. On the premises are many well-constructed buildings worthy of preservation. We believe, also, that the mill is the most desirable place to convert into a veteran's center of hope. In the rear is a brick structure approximately 175 feet long by 55 feet wide and 45 feet in height.
We plan to remodel the brick building into three stories, which will serve as a training center with classrooms. The tall steel and metal buildings will be converted into space for instruction in the mechanical trades. We will have the capacity to enroll approximately one thousand veterans per session. As a part of their training, the students will receive practical experience by helping to rebuild parts of the Natchitoches community in need of physical improvement.
We have filed as for-profit status. We have already begun collecting donations in the form of pennies. We will continue to solicit penny contributions from all over the country. However, we will need additional support monies to establish our financial base. It will be very difficult to establish our base solely with penny contributions. Nonetheless, the project is ultimately to be self-supporting through real estate and industrial projects. This is not a government-subsidized program.
As a pilot project we hope that others follow our example and establish centers in other states throughout the country.
Paul DeBow, the project's president, and Michael Brackston, the founder and chairman of the board, are available for interviews concerning our goals and means.
"IN GOD WE TRUST" is our signature in such a time as this.
We are calling forth all those who would join with us, determined to secure the future of those who have given their all with a great sense of duty to this land of ours under "in God we trust," the One and only Mighty Power to save or destroy.
We humbly embark on this project, a pilot program that other states may follow and see, indeed, what God can accomplish as He wills if we follow Him in faith and determination, without succumbing to negative, scornful, or godless accusations.
The train symbolizes our determination and power of strength under "in God we trust" in joyful gratitude for all those who ride it.