La Societe des Quarante Hommes et Huit Chevaux Grande Voiture du Texas TEXAS VOYAGEUR NEWS VETERAN GROUP REPLACES DECKS, RAMPS AT EMERGENCY SHELTER

Members of the 40 and 8 chapter from Copperas Cove teamed up with volunteers from Home Depot in Killeen last week to build a new deck and wheelchair ramp, and a new loading dock at the Cove House Emergency Shelter complex on Halstead Avenue. Four Home Depot employees were up and at ‘em early last Friday with $940 worth of donated lumber to remove and replace weathered plywood and two-by-fours on the front of the Cove House office building, and also to expand the loading dock around back.

Cove House executive director Brian Hawkins said he is “very grateful” for improvements done to the facility that includes a free clinic and four houses that can accommodate six men, six women, and two families.

“I think it’s amazing,” Hawkins said. “We had a crew come in and re-do this deck about three years ago, and time and weather has done what time and weather does to wood, so we’re very grateful they’re coming in to help us. The back deck is going to give us an easier way to unload trucks. Right now, we don’t have a good way to back directly up to the dock. We have to back up next to it, which means a lot of hand-loading and off-loading, so we’re very excited about it.”

The local 40 and 8, a veteran’s organization originally founded as an arm of the American Legion in 1920 by American World War I vets returning from France, routinely donates and delivers cleaning supplies to Cove House, and when members of the group noticed the deteriorating condition of the wood deck, they decided to help with a new one. David Harris, 40 and 8 senior vice commander, said he contacted Home Depot and the company quickly agreed to donate both materials and labor for the project. The 40 and 8 joined in by picking up the tab for a barbecue lunch provided for half-price by Monty’s Steaks Brew and Barbecue.

Home Depot’s team leader for the construction project was Terrence Tobler, who was joined by Jaimee Weghorst, Terrell Rice, and Brandi Phillips. All said, they were happy to volunteer their time Friday to help out. “Home Depot has been doing this for years,” said Tobler, who spent six years in the U.S. Army, mostly stationed at Fort Hood. “This is part of our community outreach. We’re happy to be here and ready to get it done. We want to let people know we’re here for them, and doing all we can to support them, especially veterans.”