Memphis, TN, Oct. 11, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fisher House Foundation and the VA Memphis Health Care System celebrated construction progress on a new Fisher House at the Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr. VA Medical Center during a “Topping Off Ceremony.” The ceremony, hosted by Medical Center Director Joseph P. Vaughn and Chief of Staff of Fisher House Foundation Mary B. Considine, marked a pivotal moment of the building process as the final beam was placed over the entrance of the new Fisher House that is currently under construction.
Scheduled for completion in 2024, this new Fisher House will join the Fisher House already serving Tennessee Veterans, in Murfreesboro.
The more than 13,000 sq. ft. Fisher House will provide lodging for families of Veterans and military at no cost, allowing them to be close to their loved ones at the most stressful times, while they are receiving medical care. At full occupancy, it will save military and Veteran families more than half a million dollars each year, but more importantly, the new Fisher House will allow Veterans to receive care they could not readily access in the past without a place for their loved ones to stay.
“We are excited to offer a new option in providing comprehensive care for our Veterans and their families,” said Vaughn. “The Fisher House will be a place for Veterans and their families to find comfort during difficult moments in their care journey. We understand the positive impact it can make for a patient to have family by their side, and the Fisher House makes that possible.”
"Fisher Houses give Veterans and their loved ones a home away from home that is not only a place to stay, but also a community of support,” said Considine. “We want families and Veterans to understand the deep respect we have for their service and sacrifice, a respect that can be felt both at Fisher House and throughout the city of Memphis.”
The new Fisher House at the Lt. Col. Luke Weathers VA Medical Center will have 16 accessible suites, a spacious kitchen, large communal living, dining and family rooms, a laundry room, and a shared patio. The home will be gifted to the VA upon completion as part of the public-private partnership between Fisher House Foundation and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Fisher House Foundation proudly recognizes the generosity of the following contributors for their extraordinary support of our military and Veteran families: Tennessee Fisher House Foundation, Vehicles for Veterans, and the many gifts of a grateful nation.
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About Fisher House
Fisher House Foundation is best known for its network of 95 comfort homes where military and Veteran families can stay at no cost while a loved one is receiving treatment. These homes are located at major military and VA medical centers nationwide, and in Europe, close to the medical center or hospital they serve. Fisher Houses have up to 21 suites, with private bedrooms and baths. Families share a common kitchen, laundry facilities, a warm dining room, and an inviting living room. Fisher House Foundation ensures that there is never a lodging fee. Since its inception, the program has saved military and veteran families an estimated $575 million in out-of-pocket costs for lodging and transportation. www.fisherhouse.org
About VA Memphis Health Care System
The Memphis Veterans Affairs Health Care System consists of one main campus located at 1030 Jefferson Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, that operates 196 beds, which includes a 20-bed Spinal Cord Injury Center and a Women’s Health Center on a 33-acre campus. It sponsors nine community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) within the service area of Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi. The medical center located on the main campus is a tertiary care facility classified as a Clinical Referral Level I-a Facility and one of the most complex medical centers in the VA system. It is a teaching hospital, providing a full range of patient care services, with advanced technology, as well as extensive education and research programs. Comprehensive primary, secondary, and tertiary health care are provided in areas of medicine, general cardiovascular and neurological surgery, psychiatry, physical medicine and rehabilitation, spinal cord injury, neurology, oncology, dentistry, and geriatrics. Specialized outpatient services are provided through general, specialty, and subspecialty outpatient clinics including a women's health center. Services are available to Veterans living within a 53-county tri-state area of Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi.
Michelle Horn Fisher House Foundation (703) 819-3177 mhorn@fisherhouse.org
