NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — Cameron Wright is a proud US Marine Corps veteran.
“Forever a Marine. I took that oath and it does not expire,” he said.
He spent time in Japan, the Philippines, and Iraq and Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm.
“That whole concept, join the military, see the world, I got to do that. I experienced that,” Wright said.
After the Marines, Cameron got married and had a daughter.
But his problems with alcohol got worse. It was so bad that he lost everything, including his family.
“I was a mess,” Wright said.
He was lost for years and sometimes without a place to live.
“There’s a bridge not too far from here that I used to sleep up underneath until they put a fence under it, so I wasn’t allowed to go there anymore,” said Wright.
But finally, one day three years ago, Cameron decided to get the help he knew was available in Pasco County from One Community Now and the Veterans Support Center.
“I finally said I got nothing to lose because I gave it all away already,” Wright said.
The Veterans Support Center connects veterans with everything they need to fight addiction, get a job, and find a home.
“When they hit a place where there is a dead end or a choke point, they kind of give up. And what we try to do is try and make sure they keep on working through that,” said Virgil Funk, who heads up the Veterans Support Center.
Wright now has a job, a place to live, and most importantly, his relationship with his family.
Now he’s training to help other vets.
“If I can do anything to help them get out of that pain and misery and suffering that they are going through, and if I can help them progress and move forward, that’s really all I want to do,” said Wright.
The biggest event One Community Now holds for veterans is Operation Stand Down on April 25 and 26.
All in one place, veterans can find everything from medical help, haircuts, and even a special veterans court.
Operation Stand Down is at the Concourse Rotary Pavilion at 11919 Alric Pottberg Road in Shady Hills.
