Felicia Perez Kausin and Rachelle Nugent travelled from out of state for Tuesday’s dedication of the 100th Fisher House, located across the street from the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago.
The two developed a friendship while staying at a Fisher House in Palo Alto, California, and were excited to meet and personally thank the Fisher family for providing them with a home away from home for more than a year while caring for their loved ones at a nearby Veterans Affairs hospital.
Fisher Houses are fully functional comfort homes that serve military and veteran families receiving care. They provide lodging at no cost so they can focus on healing, be it during a one-night stay for a medical check-up or for longer stays, as was the case for the two friends.
For California resident Perez Kausin, it was to be with her World War II veteran father, David G. Perez, who had been receiving medical care due to a fall. He died this year at the age of 105. Perez Kausin said her dad was so grateful she’d been able to stay in a safe place just minutes away.
For Nugent, who quit her job in Michigan to be near her 21-year-old son Ian during his long recovery from a traumatic brain injury in the line of duty, the home was a godsend, she said.
“These families bear burdens and make sacrifices that the average American will never understand,” said Ken Fisher, grand-nephew of founder Zachary Fisher and current Fisher Foundation CEO.
The homes are located across the country, as well as in Germany and the United Kingdom.
The foundation ensures there is never a lodging fee. Since its inception, the program has saved military and veteran families an estimated $650 million in out-of-pocket costs for lodging and transportation, officials said.
Inside the new Fisher House, there are 16 suites with private bathrooms; some with two beds, others with one. They have closets, dressers and a TV. But it’s not only the amenities that make Fisher Houses a place that helps military and veteran families during challenging times; it’s the community of people being there for each other that makes them special.
“Having people there who are going through the same thing you’re going through is so special, because sometimes you’re so numb,” Nugent said.
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While the rooms are private, the homes have a large shared kitchen, laundry facilities, a dining room and a sitting room. It’s there that community is made because while there is a house manager, the families cook and care for themselves and each other.
Fisher House Foundation President David Coker said that down to the last detail, the homes are built and decorated for the best experience possible during challenging times filled with stress and worry. The books on the sitting room’s bookcases have the same color scheme for a relaxing atmosphere; the wall art is of well-known Chicago landmarks.
“The fact that this is at the Lovell Federal Health Care Center is such tremendous symbolism,” Coker said. “It supports the two populations we serve: the (Department of Defense) and the VA.”
TV personality and former Marine, Montel Williams, who was the master of ceremonies at the event and is a foundation trustee, shared that while his wife did not stay at a Fisher House during his VA hospital stay seven years ago when he suffered a hemorrhagic stroke, it was her company that made all the difference to him.
Those words and the ones from Fisher — who said that in times of healing, family is the greatest source of strength– rang very true to the two friends.
“It’s really a gift to any community and VA hospital that has one,” Perez Kausin said of the homes.
Lovell Director Robert Buckley said the building of the home was a long time coming.
“To say we’re excited to open the 100th, and the first Department of Defense and VA Fisher House in the nation, is an understatement,” Buckley said.
Officials said there have been 543,000 military and veteran families served at Fisher Houses.
The Fisher House in North Chicago is the second built in Illinois. A Fisher House at Hines Veterans Affairs Hospital opened in 2010, and reports serving over 14,000 guests in its 15 years of operation.
The North Chicago house was officially dedicated by former Army Sgt. Allen Lynch, who received the Medal of Honor for heroic actions during the Vietnam War. The house is dedicated to the memory of Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher, the couple who founded the organization.
The home was gifted to the Lovell Health Care Center as part of the public-private partnership between the Fisher House Foundation, the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs.