Veterans' group home in Freeport renovated by Bolla Charity Foundation

Clinton Abney served in the Army decades ago, but he said his biggest fight came in recent years — his battle with homelessness.

“When you lose your wife, you feel like you have no place to go. I felt a little lost,” Abney, 82, said. He joined the Army in 1963 and had long been the sole financial support for his mother and his wife before falling on hard times. 

“I was living with my sister in Garden City [after his wife died]. Then my sister passed away, and her kids — my nieces and nephews — sold the house.” He added, “I would ride the bus all night because I was homeless.”

But things are looking up for Abney now. He lives in a United Veterans Beacon House group home located in a two-story Victorian in Freeport that was built in the early 1900s. And the home and the 12 veterans who live there have been given a new lease on life with help from the Bolla Charity Foundation.

It paid for a $275,000 renovation of the structure, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held there Thursday to celebrate the completion of the project. Work started in April and took three months.

Bolla Oil Corp. operates convenience stores, gas stations, auto repair shops and car washes throughout themetropolitan area. Its foundation undertook the renovation of the Pine Street home after “adopting” it in support of the nonprofit Restoring Homes, Restoring Hope initiative.

Under the program, a business or organization adopts a veterans group home to fund in whole or in part an upgrade of the property. There are a total of 10 other homes up for adoption in Huntington, Islip and Hempstead that serve as transitional residences or permanent homes for veterans and their families.

Founded in 1994, Beacon House has provided housing and specialized support services throughout Long Island to more than 27,500 people in need, so the group homes endure a lot of wear and tear over the years. The remodeled 1,800-square-foot Freeport residence includes a new roof, vinyl siding, insulation, windows, landscaping, driveway, and deck as well as a redesigned and expanded kitchen and dining room, new sofas and bedroom sets, and central air conditioning.

“It is a hallmark of civilized society to honor those who have sacrificed in the name of freedom, and yet we have veterans living on the streets,” said Harry Singh of Old Westbury, founder of the Bolla Charity Foundation. “They all deserve shelter, at a minimum.”

John O’Gorman, 73, who served in the Navy and was deployed to Vietnam in 1970, is a Philadelphia native who lives in the Freeport house. He said the redo of the home was very “generous” on the part of the foundation.

Veterans who lived at the home prior to the renovation were temporarily relocated until it was finished.

“It’s an excellent, beautiful job, and it is impressive,” O’Gorman said. “It’s nice to come into this house now.”

Abney said he was touched to be respected and remembered in this way.

“It makes me feel good — it’s nice that they [Bolla] thought about us,” Abney added.