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The old saying goes "one man's trash is another man's treasure." Thanks to the help of JDog Junk Removal and Hauling, Housing Development Corp. (HDC) MidAtlantic is bringing the idiom to life for central Pennsylvania veterans.
JDog is a junk removal and hauling business owned and operated by veterans and their family members. HDC MidAtlantic has worked closely with the JDog franchise in York, Pennsylvania, to find a second life for furniture from its Lancaster House North. Instead of throwing unwanted furniture in the trash, the items are donated to Mr. Sandy's Homeless Veteran's Shelter in York to furnish apartments and living areas for residents transitioning to new homes.
HDC MidAtlantic and JDog have worked together over the past year and a half to salvage furniture from Lancaster House North. Sean Haney, owner and operator of the York JDog franchise and a Marine Corps veteran, notes that bedroom pieces are the most useful and needed furniture for homeless vets adjusting to new living arrangements. Among the items donated are metal bed frames, nightstands, dressers and chairs, helping four veterans and their families furnish new homes.
When recalling his experiences with HDC MidAtlantic and Lancaster House North, one memory in particular stands out to Haney. He had visited Lancaster House North to clear items from the building's storeroom and an apartment recently vacated by a tenant. He left with a chair, dresser, bed frame, nightstand and lamp. After loading the furniture onto his truck, Haney called his contact at the shelter to let her know what had been collected. She was overwhelmed. She had been working with a homeless veteran and his wife who had found an available apartment but had no furniture. Coincidentally, the items collected by Haney were enough to set up the couple's new home. The furniture was delivered to the couple later that day.
"It's what we're all about at JDog," he says. "We're an organization formed by veterans and run by veterans to help veterans."
HDC MidAtlantic Facilities Manager Ed Gower, who oversees the partnership with JDog, adds: "As a veteran myself, it is always refreshing to know we are able to assist veterans and their families. And it is a pleasure to have a business partner whose motive is more than profit."