Members of military community react to impending $600 COVID-19 stimulus checks

As North Carolinians hold their breath for the impending COVID-19 relief stimulus checks, the military community is also eagerly awaiting some help.

Whitney Anderson and her military husband live in Moore County with their three children. They've been in the Sandhills for several years now and say they've been blessed during such an unprecedented time.

"I mean, with us being military, the steady paycheck is pretty helpful," Anderson said.

Before COVID-19, Anderson was working several jobs while getting certified to be a real estate agent. When the pandemic struck, she said those side jobs quickly vanished; however, her husband's military checks kept them above water.

When the first stimulus check arrived, the Andersons used it to pay for real estate-related expenses and support their parents, who were financially struggling.

With the $600 checks on their way, the family intends to use the money to help them recover from the holiday season, pay off some of their student loans, and deal with any expenses related to their children.

"For that extra, we'll have it off to the side, not only for child care, which I have three kids and one of them is not in school," Anderson noted.

Meanwhile, for Fayetteville Army veteran Austin Davis, the incoming sum will provide him with a little more stability.

"We have people out here struggling, we have people out here dying, we have people suffering," Davis said. The veteran, who was stationed at Fort Bragg for a time, is now without a job, attends school, and solely relies on his monthly Veterans Affairs check as a source of income.

"I only get paid once a month, like most veterans do. So, by the end of each month, it's like, where's my change jar?'" Davis said.

Davis told ABC11 that he's been keeping a close eye on Congress's attempts to pass a $2,000 stimulus check. While he has been able to endure this pandemic, Davis acknowledged that there are many people in Cumberland County who are not so lucky and wouldn't be able to accomplish much with $600. He hoped Congress will take swift action to help those in need.

"All the people up there in Congress, all they can do is fight and bicker about one, about a one-time $2,000 check, when they're the ones still getting paid each month," Davis said.