43
Camp Liberty project helps veterans adjust
By LINDA M. LINONIS
LIBERTY
Photo
C.A.P. Development LLC, a nonprofi t company run by Randall Cash, is refurbishing Knights Inn in.Liberty for transitional housing for veterans.
Camp Liberty | At Knights Inn
Who: C.A.P. Development LLC, a military housing-project company, 704 E. Midlothian Blvd., Youngstown.
What: The nonprofit 501(c)3 organization is providing transitional housing and counseling for homeless veterans.
Rooms: Twenty have been redone. An additional 54 will be ready in June and the remaining 40 by the fall. Rooms have a TV, microwave and small refrigerator. Housing is for men and women, and some family units will be available.
Cost: The overall project is estimated at $2 million. The three-phrase project includes the renovation of Knights Inn, building of stand-alone townhouses on adjoining property and expansion into Mahoning County.
Information: Call 330-759-1747.
Website: www.orgsites.com/OH/militaryhousingprojects
Feedback: Pat Ungaro, Liberty administrator, said, “This project is based on private funding, and that’s a good sign. They’re investing in the community, and it could lead to other projects.”
Randall “Randy” Cash takes the words of former President John F. Kennedy to heart.
“Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country” isn’t a catchy phrase for Cash but the impetus behind his opening a transitional housing project for military veterans.
Cash, along with Keith Archer and Joe Perfetta, formed C.A.P. Development LLC, a nonprofit organization, in 2009. Cash said the veterans-housing company has a lease-purchase agreement on the Knights Inn, 1600 Motor Inn Drive.
The Knights Inn is located off Belmont Avenue in the cluster of hotels/motels there.
Cash worked as a project supervisor for Archer Construction of Apollo, Pa., run by Archer and Perfetta. To the project they call Camp Liberty, the men bring 45 years of construction expertise.
And they’ll need it. The 114-room hotel has stood empty for several years and needs a complete renovation. Cash said he used his personal funds to get the project started and is down to “nickels and dimes.” The initial investment has been about $250,000, and the overall cost is estimated at $1.2 million.
So far, 20 rooms have been redone. Cash said two men — a Vietnam veteran who is working part time and a disabled veteran — already are living there. An additional 54 rooms will be transformed in the coming weeks.
The rooms are being redone with new drywall, wiring and plumbing. New furniture and fixtures also have been added.
“We’ve basically gutted the rooms and gone from there,” Archer said.
Cash described Camp Liberty and the housing project as a “grass-roots” effort to help veterans.
“I think of the concept of ‘no one left behind,’ and when I heard about homeless veterans living under bridges or shelters, I had to do something,” Cash said.
An Army veteran, Cash said he understands how veterans sometimes end up homeless.
“Some are suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome,” he said. “The economy at home hasn’t been good, and transitioning from military to civilian life isn’t easy.”
Cash emphasized that Camp Liberty isn’t a shelter; it provides transitional housing, the cost of which is offset by benefits the veterans receive.
“It isn’t permanent housing. We want to get them in and out,” he said.
He said the project is based on giving veterans support they need after they have served their country and “protected our freedom.” Cash said service personnel “stepped up” to their assignments around the world and now communities must “step out” to help veterans.
Cash has asked trade unions to donate their skills to help out in the project. And other donations would be welcome.
Jamie Nezbeth, who has 15 years of experience as an office administrator, is volunteering at Camp Liberty.
“I’m unemployed now and couldn’t just sit at home,” she said.
Nezbeth said she has the skills to help veterans write r sum s and navigate the Veterans Affairs system.
“She’s been a godsend,” Archer said of the volunteer.
Nezbeth also brings personal interest to the effort. Her husband is a Vietnam veteran, and she is involved in the Veterans Motorcycle Association and Legion Riders of American Legion Post 700 in Howland. Post members plan to volunteer at a work day at Camp Liberty and have a fundraiser.
Nezbeth has coordinated events for the Fisher House, the military version of Ronald McDonald House. She’s lending event planning and fund-raising knowledge to Camp Liberty.
“I know what I can do,” she said.
Camp Liberty just began a letter campaign to American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts in Ohio. The letter explains Camp Liberty’s mission and seeks donations.