William C. Frazier is an Army Veteran who served his country from 1976 to 1979 as a power station operator. A Little Rock native, he joined the Army at seventeen. ” I had to get my mom’s permission since I wasn’t old enough. I needed a job to buy a car, and the Army sounded like a good job! I like and need discipline. They sent me to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, and I remember working outside on a generator in the blizzard of 1978. The Army wasn’t exactly what I expected!”
Mr. Frazier suffered an eye injury in basic training, but he didn’t let that stop him. “I’m a man who keeps my promises, and I had made a promise.” That dedication to promises eventually backfired on him. He developed severe anxiety over anything he did wrong, and as the condition worsened, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Initially, he received a medical discharge, but it eventually was changed to an honorable discharge. He returned to Little Rock, which remained his home base all his life. “I’ve lived and worked in lots of places. I’ve been married and divorced and have five children but always returned to Little Rock. My mom lived just a little ways from S. Francis House, and now all three of my daughters live in Little Rock as well. One lives on the property my mom owned.”
Mr. Frazier used to live on that property as well, but multiple hospitalizations left him behind on utilities. Over time the house fell into disrepair. In addition to those problems, the house was vandalized while he was gone, and there was no money to make needed repairs. “We are getting the paperwork done to put the house in my daughter’s name so she can get the permits for what needs to be done, but I’m not going back to live there. Most of my belongings were stolen, so there’s not much there. I want someplace I don’t have to worry about.”
Mr. Frazier regularly sees his daughters and grandchildren and maintains contact with his sons who live out of state. “I would like to go back to work, find a place to live, and help raise my grandkids. Family is important.” We’re glad you are a part of the St. Francis House family, Mr. Frazier, and we look forward to seeing you meet your goals!