EDWARDSVILLE, Kan. — It’s a brand new beginning for 22-year-old veteran Jake Carlson — he finally has a place to call home. This week, Patricia Thomas gave Carlson the keys to her old home near the Kansas River as a way to help out the struggling veteran and say thank you for his service to the country.
“We talked things over and she said hey, we’re moving to Olathe I have a house I would love to give you,” said Carlson. “We came out, checked it out and that was that.”
Carlson had been staying with friends and at his girlfriend Sidni Sprenkle’s parents house. Now Carlson has his own digs.
“It’s just a beautiful feeling to know that at the end of the day we can come home and just kick our shoes off and get ready for tomorrow,” said Carlson.
Carlson served in Afghanistan as a truck driver for the 82nd Airborne Division. His truck was hit by a roadside bomb, and Carlson was thrown from the vehicle, leaving him with brain injuries and no longer in the service. Back home, Carlson says his faith in humanity is restored thanks to Thomas and the Sprenkle family.
“I would be lost without people like this, it has really given me faith in society that there are people out there with a heart that are willing to extend their hand to somebody in need,” said Carlson.
Carlson says he’ll be spending most of the summer fixing up the place and then he plans to attend school in the fall.
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