The Alabama Power Foundation has announced it has donated $25,000 to a project aimed at supporting veterans after they return home from combat.
Dovetail Landing, an organization created by Gold Star mother Alana Centilli in memory of her son, Daniel, aims to give returning veterans a safe, comfortable place to gather and live. Their campus, currently being constructed in Lincoln, will provide veterans with a variety of resources, including housing and a “reverse boot camp” that will help former soldiers get back on their feet.
The donation from the Alabama Power Foundation will go towards the completion of the Talladega County campus’ first building, Daniel’s Home, named after Centilli’s late son.
Centilli’s father was employed by Alabama Power for over three decades, and she believes that the example he set through his work ethic helped pave the the way for the Dovetail Landing Project.
“I grew up on a farm in Talladega County, and hard work was just something that was expected from day one,” Centilli said. “My dad – he was a lineman with Alabama Power for 33 years. When that phone rang, I knew he was going. It was either a hurricane, a tornado, an act of nature – something. And he always went, and he was proud of that. So as a child, we learned that you do it.”
“You just do what it takes to get it done.”
To get the Dovetail Landing Project off the ground, Centilli met with Darrell Ingram, the County Commissioner for District 1 of Talladega County, and Lincoln mayor Carroll “Lew” Watson, a Vietnam veteran.
“[Centilli] and I went to visit Mr. Watson,” Ingram said. “[She] gave her speech of what she wanted to do and we asked to be helped. [Watson] reaches over and pulls a map down and it’s this facility right here. He said, ‘What about this? We own the whole property – we’re talking about doing a whole complex with softball, baseball and name it Veterans Park. What do you think about that?’
“[Centilli] burst out crying and it got me, too. It started right there. They soon afterwards donated the 57 acres to Dovetail.”
“It’s amazing – every time you turn around there’s someone wanting to be a part of it.”
“What was once an initial concept is becoming a reality,” said Dovetail Landing board chairman Chad Jones. “For the past two years this has been a building, a developing, a growing thought process that is going to establish this reverse boot camp. It’s a comforting place that veterans can come and co-mingle or if they just need that one-on-one.”
The project is estimated to cost around $52 million. It has already received a variety of donations from both public and private entities, including the Alabama Legislature.
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten
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