MACON, Ga. — Macon's Daybreak shelter Monday announced they've raised more than $2 million to fund affordable housing and create a health center for the homeless.
Rebekah Grimes and her husband both struggle with medical conditions, and they miss having the feeling of their own place, but with the affordable housing and the respite center, that could all change.
"If we had a place, we would have a place to where we could stay warm. We could take showers anytime we wanted to, and if we had a bathtub, we could take baths, go swimming," said Grimes.
Rebekah Grimes suffers from peripheral artery disease, or PAD, defined as a circulatory condition that reduces blood flow to the limbs, and her husband just had surgery due to bladder failure.
"I'll probably wind up losing my legs before too long. I have good leg days to where I can walk many, many miles. Then I have days to go from here to Mulberry Church, I have to sit down five times just to get to point A to point B," said Grimes.
Grimes and her husband do have an income from Social Security, but can't afford regular housing due to all their medical bills.
"We've been here for four years now, out of the four years that we've been here, only one year we have had a roof over our head," said Grimes.
Sister Theresa Sullivan, the Director of Daybreak, says we need to help people get back on their feet.
"It kills me and it breaks my heart to see people on the streets every night, and in America, we can do better than that, and in Macon-Bibb, we definitely can do better than that," said Sullivan.
Grimes says she's just happy the investment is being made, "even if me and my husband do not get to be one of the ones, it's wonderful, and I'm ecstatically happy for the people that are able to. You go."
Groundbreaking for the housing and respite building is scheduled for January. The construction should take 12 to 14 months, and the apartments and health services building are scheduled to open in March 2023.