New GWVH kitchen celebrated

Published 12:17 pm Friday, October 13, 2023

Georgia Department of Veterans Service and STG International officials were on hand at the Georgia War Veterans Home (GWVH) Thursday to mark an occasion years in the making.

A ceremonial ribbon cutting was held to celebrate the facility’s new onsite kitchen, which has been in operation since Sept. 1 when STG International took over management of the local veterans home.

Under previous contractor PruittHealth, veterans’ meals had for 20-plus years been prepared off-site at the nearby Liberty Diner on Irwinton Road and shuttled over, according to Department of Veterans Service Health Director Russell Feagin. Before that, meals were made at the Bobby Parham Kitchen at what was once Central State Hospital.

“For years we had been wanting to have a facility here on campus so we didn’t have that distance,” Feagin said. “We finally got the funding.”

The funding was built into another project to create the long-awaited treatment unit for veterans with traumatic brain injuries. The Arlington, Va.-based government contractor made opening the kitchen a priority as it prepared to take over the veterans home management contract on the first of September. Dave Gibson, the company’s VP of program operations, said being ready to provide hot food to the veterans was one of four challenges that kept him up at night as STG transitioned into the contracted role. Everything ultimately came together in the nick of time thanks to the cooperation of the health department, food provider Fruitticher, and several others. The kitchen construction project was completed only about a month before STG came on board.

Now food is cooked right on the GWVH campus, mere steps away from where it is served to the 150 Georgia war veterans housed there. Feagin said the state provided funding for the kitchen equipment while the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) helped with construction. Georgia Veterans Service Commissioner Patricia Ross was among those in attendance Thursday.

STG International operates around 20 community-based outpatient clinics for the VA around the country, providing primary and mental health care to veterans and their families. STG founder and CEO Michelle Lee, who also attended Thursday’s grand opening, said that was not enough for her company.

“We are most proud today that we’re supporting the Georgia War Veterans Home to provide the long-term care for these people who really gave the best years of their lives to our country … We’re going to make this place the best place for all veterans to come home. We will not rest until all the eligible veterans find us and join us here,” said Lee.

STG International accomplished a lot in just the two weeks it had to transition into the role of GWVH manager. Gibson threw out another challenge, saying he would like everyone to be back in six months to celebrate the opening of the veterans home’s new transitional unit targeted at treating traumatic brain injuries.