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BROOMFIELD, Colo. — Andre Gladden has been fighting for seven months to get his belongings back after a moving company dropped off everything that he owned at a storage facility during his recent move.
Gladden is a Navy veteran and moved from Louisiana to Colorado after he left the military, but his belongings never arrived. He later found out his items never even left the state. The items were placed in storage at a U-Haul facility just a few miles from the base where he used to live.
When Gladden reached out to Contact Denver7, he had lost hope that he would ever see his items again. He was most upset about losing family heirlooms, pictures and all of his military awards.
Denver7 aired a story about Gladden last week, and the response was immediate. He says U-Haul reached out to him a few days later to let him know he would be able to pick up his belongings.
"I was told continuously, 'Hey, we can’t give you your stuff because it’s not in your name,' and that was pretty much the solid story for months," said Gladden.
A U-Haul spokesperson had initially told Denver7 that they were unable to release the items because Gladden's name was not on the storage unit.
The spokesperson later confirmed that U-Haul cut the locks on the unit and verified the contents inside belonged to Gladden after he provided a description of the items. The belongings will be turned over to him at no cost, but Denver7 has learned the rent for the unit has not been paid in months.
According to U-Haul, the storage unit was rented by Demetrias Karagiannis. Gladden says he set up the move with Karagiannis through United Moving Solutions, LLC.
"I was ecstatic, I was extremely happy that they at least got to a point like you know what, we’re going to give these items back," said Gladden.
A Denver7 Gives account has been set up in Gladdden's name to help him pay for travel and transportation expenses related to moving the items. U-Haul is requiring him to fly to Louisiana in order to move forward with releasing the belongings. The ordeal has depleted Gladden's savings because he ended up buying some new furniture to replace things he never thought he would see again.
You can donate by clicking here and selecting "Help Navy Vet Get Belongings Returned" on the drop down menu.
"Anything would be great because it’s expensive, it’s truly expensive," said Gladden.
Gladden is also getting some help from a Marine Corps veteran who saw the original story. Robert Pepper reached out to Denver7 to ask how he could help.
Pepper started reaching out to connections that he made during hurricane relief efforts. An organization called Trucks with Room to Spare has offered to transport everything for free. His boss at All Around Roofing and Exteriors has also agreed to donate $1,000 to the effort.
"When I spoke to Andre on the phone, it was a very emotional phone call," said Pepper. "You could hear the frustration and the sadness in his voice. You could hear he did feel hopeless, he felt lost."
Andre says he is no longer hopeless knowing that he will finally be able to get his belongings back, and he is grateful to everyone who is helping make that happen.
"It’s just kind of like finally I can close this chapter in my life and focus on my career now," said Gladden. "That blows my mind, and it’s amazing to feel."
