Help our vets!

Public to furnish vets' home / Federal government to give $2 for every $1 donated privatelyBy DI LEWISOGDEN -- Veterans will have a nursing home in Ogden, but without community and local government support, they will be looking at empty rooms, says the executive director of the Utah Department of Veterans Affairs.Although federal and state money will pay to build the facility, Terry Schow said Tuesday he is looking to the community to help furnish rooms in the building.More than $500,000 is needed to complete the facility, said Bob Jones, who gave a presentation Tuesday to the Weber County Commission.Only one-third of the money would have to come from the community, he said, because the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will give $2 for every dollar donated privately.The facility, now being built at 1102 N. 1200 West, will have 120 rooms for veterans, a dining area, chapel, multipurpose room and landscaped trails and parks for visitors and residents.Jones said the money donated will go toward bedroom furnishings, seating, refrigerators and audiovisual equipment for common areas, lawn and garden maintenance and decorative items.Jeremy Taylor, an Ogden resident and a retired Navy rear admiral, said a lot of help will be needed to raise the money."We need do-gooder organizations to do this and do this right," he said.For a variety of reasons, Taylor said, Utah is on the bottom of the list of places retired military members want to live. By building the nursing home, he said, the community is showing its support for the military and a desire to help those who have served.Jones said about 100 people are on a waiting list to get into the Salt Lake City facility, creating a nearly yearlong wait. Because of that wait, many place the veterans in their families into expensive private care.By creating more rooms for veterans, Jones said, families will not face long waits and veterans will get financial help for the cost of their care."Everybody says support the troops," Taylor said. "Well, I gotta tell you, that means the old warriors, too, and their families."Schow said the nursing home in Ogden will be the largest in the state and is the flagship facility for veteran care.Although it's not in the budget, Schow is trying to rise an additional $320,000 for a veterans tribute tower, which will be a memorial with a 34-foot clock tower.He said donations for furnishings and the tribute tower can be made through the Department of Veterans Affairs. For information, contact the department at (800) 894-9497 or on the Web at veterans.utah.gov