Milwaukee VA Fisher House celebrates 10-year anniversary

“From the moment we came in, I had peace of mind that I was going to be taken care of,” reads the entry the family member recorded in one of the in-room journals. “The staff and families have wrapped me up in that giant hug. 

“I am thankful for this place and all the people that have stayed here and the staff who have let me cry and talk. … I came here alone, but left here with so many friends. God bless this place.”

Torrie Hutchison, Fisher House manager, read the entry on Friday, May 1, as part of a celebration and open house marking the 10-year anniversary of the Fisher House on the Milwaukee VA grounds.

It was April 23, 2016, when the house opened its doors to begin serving as a home away from home for the families of Veterans being treated at the Milwaukee VA Medical Center.

Since then, the house has seen more than 7,800 guests and provided more than 21,200 nights of lodging, Hutchison said.

“This house has become a place of rest, support and steady kindness for thousands of families,” said Chaplain Robert Allen, chief of Chaplain Services at the Milwaukee VA. “And while the numbers are impressive, they pale in comparison to the lives touched and the comfort offered.”

Doing it all for the families

Families stay for free at the Fisher House, for as long as they need to, and the house’s staff and volunteers strive to meet the families’ every need.

“We want them to be at the bedside of their loved one” Hutchison said. “The Fisher House allows them to have that home away from home and have that support next to them.”

Indicative of the support the Fisher House provides was a wedding staged recently in the Intensive Care Unit at the Milwaukee VA Medical Center. 

The wedding was planned for June out of state, but when a key family member suddenly became ill and was admitted to the hospital, there was urgency to perform the ceremony as quickly as possible.

Hutchison and her staff leapt to meet the challenge, and within 24 hours had arranged for a ceremony that allowed the Veteran to give away the bride from his hospital bed. A reception followed at the Fisher House.

“That speaks volumes … to what we do to make impacts that are important for those families in those moments,” Hutchison said.

A community of support

The Milwaukee VA Fisher House is No. 68 among the 102 Fisher Houses located throughout the country (as well as two in Europe). While it’s currently the only Fisher House in Wisconsin, construction has begun on a Fisher House in Madison.

There are 16 guest rooms in the 13,000-square-foot house, offering all the amenities of a top-rated hotel, in addition to a community kitchen, dining room and gathering/TV room.

Hutchison noted that Fisher Houses are built and supported through community donations, and year after year, community groups and individuals continue to step up to aid the house’s mission.

“This really is a part of our community, and it’s made by the community,” said Jim McLain, executive director of the Milwaukee VA Medical Center. “It embraces the Veterans’ family members at a time when they need it most.”

Committed to the mission

Tim La Sage, president of the Fisher House Wisconsin Board of Directors, noted that when he came home wounded from battle more than 20 years ago, there was no Fisher House to provide support to his family, who struggled to help him heal from his wounds.

Because of that, La Sage is committed to making sure the families of ailing Veterans are not enduring the struggle alone.

“Knowing that there’s a group of people out there with nothing but great big hearts that will donate their time to care for folks that are probably in their worst mental state — it matters,” La Sage said. “It’s a testament of your will and faith to make sure this is recognized.”