Transitional home for Upstate veterans looks to expand

On the day that memorializes veterans, there is also some celebration among the living.

Veterans are thanking a community for helping them get back on their feet.

The program is part of Operation Restoration Welcome Home. Many vets come into the home broken and hopeless. And they leave a different person.

It is like a unique family. I've never come across one like this before, said Vietnam veteran Raymond Mack.

For veterans who used to live on the street, the home is much more than a place to stay.

It's a plus to make new friends and be around people who have lived what I have lived, experienced what I've experienced, said Vietnam veteran Jerry Henkels.

The transitional home is a sanctuary for vets to learn to manage money, get counseling, help with addiction and meet others who understand.

You start thinking no one is here to help you, but we are all here to help each other, said Mack

Mack and Henkels met in March of this year, and they say they already consider each other family

I promised Mr. Jerry that when he leaves from here he is going to be walking and he is going to ask the first lady he sees to dance, said Mack.

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Transitional home for Upstate veterans looks to expand