The sound of wet paintbrushes on walls and the scuffing of a ladder across the floor could be heard from the second floor of the old Dallas Academy Building on Monday.

If you had climbed the stairs and taken a left you would have found members and volunteers of the Selma-Dallas County Veterans Transition Home hard at work on their future office of operations.

President William Hasberry put his paintbrush down long enough to tell what he and the others were doing there on Veterans Day.

Johnnie Lehshore agreed. &uot;We feel our vision will become a reality,&uot; he said.

What this vision entails is an office where veterans, the homeless and near-homeless can receive services that they might not be aware of otherwise. Lehshore said he hopes that the office will provide Internet access, an information referral system and an area where monthly meetings can occur.

The organization already has two computers ready for operation.

The office should be up and running in about two weeks.

An open house will be scheduled at that time, and shortly after that monthly meetings will start.

The purpose of these meetings will be to brainstorm ideas, but also to provide veterans and others with information.

In addition to the office in the old academy building the group also plans to open a transitional home in a different location.

This idea, however, is still in the planning stages.

Once open, it will provide a safe and clean environment where the homeless, veterans and others can find a good meal.

The Selma-Dallas County Veterans Transition Home was incorporated in 1998.

It plans to extend its services into several different areas including individual and group counseling, physical fitness programs and transportation to a variety of locations such as jobs, the Social Security Office and the Department of Human Resources, among others.