Groups raise money for veterans home van

An early Christmas gift arrived at the beginning of October for the Missouri Veterans Home, thanks to the generosity of area veterans groups. In a joint effort by several donating sources, more than $34,000 was raised to purchase a 2005 Ford E350 van, which accommodates two wheelchairs, six seated passengers and one driver.

On Monday, the white van was officially dedicated to the home.

"This is an ending and beginning for our home," said Jan Rau, Missouri Veterans Home administrator. "It's an ending for our fund-raising effort for the van, but a beginning to provide better medical appointment transportation for the residents."

The veterans home is not required to provide medical appointment transportation to residents, but has provided the service in the past. Because this is not a required service, state and federal funds are not allocated toward the purchase of medical appointment vans.

Before the new van arrived, the veterans home had been using a 14-year-old van with 160,000 miles on it.

"On several occasions, some of our residents got stuck at doctor's offices because the wheelchair lift wouldn't function properly," Rau said. "So we would have to get a mechanic to fix it before they could get in."

Funds for the new van were donated by the VFW Auxiliary Unit 7183 and VFW Post 7183 of Lilbourn, Mo.; the Disabled Veterans Associations of Rocky River, Ohio; interest earned from the Veterans Home Perpetual Trust Fund and miscellaneous donations.

The Veterans Perpetual Trust Fund was started in the mid-1990s with a $25,000 donation from Ford and Sons Funeral Home. A benefit golf tournament has added more than $230,000 to the trust.

"The trust fund is so valuable to the veterans home," said Ken Lipps, director of public relations for the Missouri Veterans Home. "More than $10,000 in interest alone from the trust fund helped put us over the top to get this much-needed van."

The Lilbourn VFW Auxiliary Unit 7183 donated $10,000 and the Lilbourn VFW Post 7183 donated $2,000. This money was all raised through the nightly bingo games sponsored by the two organizations, said Phillip Silman, VFW Post 7183 commander.

"We always try to help the veterans home out," Silman said. "We've been helping them for years and it's great that we were able to help them get a really nice-looking van."

Lipps gave praise to the Lilbourn groups for the donations.

"It's amazing how much money they raise from playing bingo. They've probably given away at least $3 million from these bingo games they have," he said. "They're just good, honest, hard-working folks from down in the Bootheel who raise money and give it away."

For the past two years, the Missouri Veterans Home has been raising money to purchase a new van.

jfreeze@semissourian.com