The Cherokee County Homeless Veterans program and American Legion Post 45 in Canton, Ga., started the donated vehicle program just over eight years ago. We want to thank our community for donating slightly used vehicles with life left in them to our veterans who need transportation but are not able to afford a vehicle.

Today we gave away our 63rd vehicle to a Valdosta Army veteran who is part of the Shepherd Center TBI program. We also donated another vehicle to a local Canton Army veteran, whose vehicle gave up the ghost, who needs to take his daughter to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn., for regular medical treatments.

The veteran vehicle donation program provides vehicles to three types of veterans: (1) Disabled veteran at least 70% service-connected, (2) Veteran with small children who cannot afford a vehicle, and (3) Homeless veteran who needs a vehicle to get to work to get a better-paying job. All vehicles donated are run through the local Christian Brothers Automotive location, where they are evaluated by their mechanics for operational and safety of the vehicle. If minor repairs are needed to fix the vehicle, it is paid for by our program. All vehicles donated to veterans require that they pay $1 for the transfer of the vehicle to them and that they have valid vehicle insurance and a valid driver’s license.

The vehicles that have been donated by our program have gone to veterans across the state of Georgia, noted Post 45 service officer and Homeless Veterans program director Jim Lindenmayer.

Lastly - we are now counting a new category of transportation to our list: donated bikes to KSU veterans who do not have transportation and need to get to their classes on campus. We are now up to 10 bikes that have been repaired and given renewed life by Alan Ludwick, Vietnam Air Force veteran, who does this as a hobby.