Year In Review
Making an Impact: CAHEC at Work / July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2019

Meet Gerald Tubbs, Jr.

At the 2019 CAHEC Partners Conference this year, we recognized an inspirational resident who, despite having to overcome his own set of challenges, dedicates his time to helping others. Gerald Tubbs, Jr. has been a resident at Parkside Apartments in Lexington, KY, for nearly two years now, and before that he was homeless and living in his car. It’s hard to imagine the road a person travels to get where they are today, and Gerald was gracious enough to share his journey with us.

“I’ve lived in poverty my whole life,” Gerald explained. “When 9/11 happened, I decided to join the Navy.” After he enlisted, Gerald had to face the obstacle of being a gay man in the service during the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” period. He was assaulted on different occasions and eventually decided that to save his life, he had to remove himself from the situation. “I hated it because the Navy was the best thing that ever happened to me. My commanding officer said that it was a great loss to the Navy because I did my job, and I did it well.”

Shortly after, Gerald developed Crohn’s Disease and eventually found himself living on the streets. “I slept next to a homeless drug addict just to keep warm,” he said. “I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel because all the negativity in life had come up at one time.” While it did seem like a dark cloud was hovering over his head, a glimmer of hope would soon present itself.

Gerald set up a meeting with a social worker at the Veterans Administration, learned that he qualified for their housing program, and moved into Parkside Apartments in November of 2017. “Before I signed the lease here, I actually slept in my car right outside of the building. Every day when I look outside off my balcony, I can see where I came from.”

Now that Gerald is settled in, he takes pride in helping his neighbors and volunteering at the Pride Community Center in his town. “I like to get to know the people that are around me. That’s part of being in a community,” he explained.

Carmen Wampler-Collins, the Pride Center Coordinator where he volunteers, shared that Gerald’s efforts make a huge difference. “When someone with his potential, who is facing so many other issues, is having to fight every day for their survival, they have no extra energy,” Wampler-Collins explained. “But having a stable and safe place to live lets him to use all that energy in ways to give back to the community instead of just trying to keep himself alive.”

CAHEC was honored to share Gerald’s story with our partners this year so they could see firsthand the impact our mission has on the lives of residents. “Affordable housing was a gift for me to be able to get my life back together,” Gerald shared. “I did have to do the work, but this gave me an environment to do it in.”

At the 2019 CAHEC Partners Conference this year, we recognized an inspirational resident who, despite having to overcome his own set of challenges, dedicates his time to helping others. Gerald Tubbs, Jr. has been a resident at Parkside Apartments in Lexington, KY, for nearly two years now, and before that he was homeless and living in his car. It’s hard to imagine the road a person travels to get where they are today, and Gerald was gracious enough to share his journey with us.

“I’ve lived in poverty my whole life,” Gerald explained. “When 9/11 happened, I decided to join the Navy.” After he enlisted, Gerald had to face the obstacle of being a gay man in the service during the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” period. He was assaulted on different occasions and eventually decided that to save his life, he had to remove himself from the situation. “I hated it because the Navy was the best thing that ever happened to me. My commanding officer said that it was a great loss to the Navy because I did my job, and I did it well.”

Shortly after, Gerald developed Crohn’s Disease and eventually found himself living on the streets. “I slept next to a homeless drug addict just to keep warm,” he said. “I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel because all the negativity in life had come up at one time.” While it did seem like a dark cloud was hovering over his head, a glimmer of hope would soon present itself.

 

Gerald set up a meeting with a social worker at the Veterans Administration, learned that he qualified for their housing program, and moved into Parkside Apartments in November of 2017. “Before I signed the lease here, I actually slept in my car right outside of the building. Every day when I look outside off my balcony, I can see where I came from.”

Now that Gerald is settled in, he takes pride in helping his neighbors and volunteering at the Pride Community Center in his town. “I like to get to know the people that are around me. That’s part of being in a community,” he explained.

Carmen Wampler-Collins, the Pride Center Coordinator where he volunteers, shared that Gerald’s efforts make a huge difference. “When someone with his potential, who is facing so many other issues, is having to fight every day for their survival, they have no extra energy,” Wampler-Collins explained. “But having a stable and safe place to live lets him to use all that energy in ways to give back to the community instead of just trying to keep himself alive.”

CAHEC was honored to share Gerald’s story with our partners this year so they could see firsthand the impact our mission has on the lives of residents. “Affordable housing was a gift for me to be able to get my life back together,” Gerald shared. “I did have to do the work, but this gave me an environment to do it in.”