An elderly veteran from Temple now has a new home after the house he grew up in had to be demolished.
The materials and labor, estimated to be worth $65,000, were all donated local organizations and volunteers.
Robert Marshall is a U.S. Army veteran. Back in September 2014, Marshall got news that the home he had grown up in was uninhabitable and would have to be torn down.
"I would always tell him, I'd look at that roof and I said, Robert you gotta get out of there because it's gonna fall," recalled his sister Dorothy Kearns.
The community quickly came together to help Marshall build a new home where new memories could be created. The VA/Central Texas Veterans Health Care System gathered volunteers and organizations that would make this dream for Marshall Possible. They also made sure that Marshall had a place to stay while the two-year project was underway.
"Anytime you get to help someone, if you're doing it from the heart, it's always good. It's always good," said Willie Hunter, a TSTC student who volunteered with his class to help rebuild the home.
Several local organizations and stores also contributed efforts donating materials worth thousands of dollars.
"I tell ya, it's very humbling. I got a little choked up myself seeing him choked up. It means a lot to be able to help somebody and give back," said Jeremy Kline, store manager of the Home Depot store in Temple.
Marshall's siblings hold fond memories of their old house on Henderson Street. "I remember running up and down this street playing street ball," said Joyce Marshall Lloyd, the youngest of the Marshall siblings. And, they're grateful for the help their older brother has received. "I see what love built. That's what I see."
The house that was bought when Marshall was only eight years old has been built to last another generation. He is very grateful and he said that dreams, sooner or later, definitely come true. "I just knew that one day I'd be back."
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