Helping homeless men – moving right along
Last month, journalist and storyteller Dan Beckmann began recounting the construction of our new Men’s Service Center (MSC). In this post, Dan picks up where his last update left off. His talents never cease to impress us, and we’re grateful for his interest in MSC news!
It’s incredible, really, when you think about everything that goes into construction – architecture, civil engineering, effective planning, designing,
new technologies and resources – all of which must come together and work seamlessly with one another to create an infrastructure. It also helps to have City of Orlando, Orange County and community support. And because that’s happening at Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, construction on the Men’s Service Center is coming along splendidly.
While there is still much work to be done, the site is really taking shape. Mounds of dirt that were once piled up twenty-feet high have now been plowed into a flat surface, awaiting the new building. Shortly, concrete will be poured into wood forms, creating the wall for the new retention pond. Re-bar and footers will be strategically placed to mark the location of the soon-to-be building. “What a red-letter day that will be,” said the Coalition’s COO Allison Krall. “The first pour for the facility itself!”
And while the atmosphere inside the construction site is one of satisfaction, clients and those on the outside of the property are equally proud. Coalition resident Glen J. put it this way: “I think it’s going great so far. They’ve been working really quickly…it’s amazing to see this part of the process, before they pour concrete.”
Until the walls go up, the mixing, surveying, and pouring continues, while neighbors, volunteers, and workers alike wait for the building to rise. Stay tuned…lots more to come!
I MOVED FROM ATLANTA TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO. WITHIN A YEAR OF EMPLOYMENT AS ONE OF TWO ORANGE COUNTY’S NEWLY HIRED CASE WORKERS FOR THE ADULT DRUG COURT PROGRAM, WE WERE SEEKING TO DEVELOP TIES WITH COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS. OUR EFFORTS WERE TO INTEGRATE OUR DRUG COURT PROGRAM WITH THE COALITION. I LEARNED THEN OF THE DREAM TO DEVELOP THIS CENTER AND HAD MY DOUBTS DUE TO THE PROBLEMS I HAD WITNESSED IN ATLANTA AND ITS REFORM EFFORTS TO “RID HOMELESSNESS IN 10 YEARS PLAN.” THEREFORE I AM HAPPY TO SEE THE GROUND HAS BEEN MOVED AROUND ON THIS EARTH SHATTERING PLAN. I AWAIT THE CONSTRUCTION OF WALLS AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A DREAM AS WELL AS AN INTEGRATION OF HELPING THE HOMELESS AND HOPELESSNESS DUE TO DRUG ADDICTION AMONG THOSE WHO IT WILL SERVE.