Historic AB Fall Mansion To Become Center To Help Soldiers

The AB Fall mansion in central El Paso is slated to become a center for soldiers seeking help with mental illness, after the city used eminent domain to obtain it.

Since 1994, the city asked the former owners of the mansion, Sib and Billy Abraham to renovate the historic house. They said they were refurbishing it incrementally, but the city entered eminent domain proceedings and paid about $800-thousand for the property.

The city is now in the process of renovating the home, which is estimated to cost about $1.2 million, according to a city spokeswoman.

Once the renovations are complete next summer, the city will allow the County’s Mental Health Mental Retardation agency to use it, free of charge, for a center that will help soldiers and their families dealing with mental health issues.

The city of El Paso had previously promised to contribute $100-thousand a year for a mental health collaborative between University Medical Center and MHMR. But in lieu of the money, the city will donate the use of the AB Fall mansion, said Representative Steve Ortega.

Veterans Rally Point, the MHMR section who will be in charge of the center, deals with soldiers transitioning into their regular life after deployment.

Retired First Sergeant Mike Anslinger, the military liaison for the project, who has been diagnosed with PTSD himself, said the center will help troops dealing with mental scars – which come from witnessing “the carnage, the bodies, even pulling a trigger and killing somebody, that’s a life-changing event right there.”

Veterans Rally Point has received about $200-thousand in grants from the state that will go toward maintaining the facility once it opens. They plan on seeking more grants.

There will also be services at the mansion for homeless, job-seeking veterans.

Since it is a historic site – there will also be hours for the public to look at the house.//