ORANGE PARK – In a flash, other things in Felisha White’s life were far more critical than being unable to find her ID.

A debilitating stroke left her bed-ridden and facing months, if not years, of rehabilitation. When she’s not being physically stretched to find some sense of normalcy, she watches her door, hoping to see a family member break the monotony of solitude.

Her spirit remains bright, her mind is quick. She has moved forward the best she knows how, but her mother, Deborah Thorpe, is struggling as her Power of Attorney because amid disruptions created by Felisha's condition, she lost her purse – and her ID.

“My mom takes care of my business, but everywhere she went, they asked for a copy of my ID, and she didn’t have one,” Felisha said. “It would have been almost impossible to take me to get one. My mom is a very small lady, and it would have been hard for her to get me into a wheelchair and get me in a car and everything.”

So, the Clay County Tax Collector’s Office came to her.

The agency’s new mobile ID GO! service enables residents who can’t physically visit the tax collector’s office or any of the annexes to get Florida IDs.

“It was so efficient that they were able to come out, and they did in such great manner,” Felisha said.

Deborah does her daughter’s business without worry, while Felisha concentrates solely on rehabbing to build strength on her body's left side.

The portable machine enables the tax collector’s office to expand its services. According to Tax Collector Diane Hutchings and Operations Director Brenda Harvey, they visit residents at assisted living and rehabilitation facilities and inmates at the Clay County Jail who are about to be released.

“The point was, there are a lot of people that can't even do their legal documents because they don’t have an ID for the notary to verify it's them,” Hutchings said. “I know we accommodated people before we opened at the Park Avenue office (in Orange Park) from Moosehaven; they’ve rolled over in a bed or a wheelchair. They would bring over residents, which was challenging because our cameras are stationary on the counter, but if we adjusted the bed and the camera a little bit, we could take the photo.”

Now they can bring the mobile camera to Moosehaven.

The county received ID GO! from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. It’s a necessary piece of equipment, since the Florida Legislature passed a statute that requires everyone to have an ID or driver’s license to improve security and prevent fraud.

Helping inmates leave jail with their IDs helps them avoid delays with their job searches, which decreases their chances of returning to the system.

“What I did is, I partnered with Diane Hutchings, and she got a mobile machine,” said CCSO Program Unit Supervisor Patty Atkinson. “They come over here and do the IDs in the facility. It just makes it a lot easier for everybody.”

Harvey said they processed five IDs on their first visit, eight on their second and 10 on their third. The collector’s office will make two monthly trips across Houston Street to the jail to ensure all inmates leave with proper identification.

“I feel good about doing it, just because I want them to be able to get established once they get out,” Atkinson said. “If they don't have an ID, it is extremely difficult to get a job.”

Or for Felisha White’s mother to conduct business on her behalf.

“My mom and I are like best friends,” Felisha said. “Having that ID made things so much easier for both of us. I look forward to seeing her, because that’s one thing we don’t have to worry about.”

Felisha also asked a favor of everyone with a friend or family in assisted living or a rehab center.

“Please visit,” she said. “It means so much" because residents are by themselves.