Turner Supports USO’s Operation Enduring Care as General Contractor of Construction of New Center for Wounded Warriors
Center at Fort Belvoir in Virginia will host troops, spouses, children, siblings and parents- everyone important to recovery
Arlington, VA. (April 11, 2011) – As a dedicated friend of the America’s troops and their families, Turner Construction Company has partnered with the USO to build a new Wounded Warrior and Family Center on the grounds of Fort Belvoir in Virginia. Turner has joined the USO, not only as the general contractor for the center, but also as a major donor on the Fort Belvoir project.
The new center will support wounded warriors at the Fort Belvoir Community Hospital and the Warrior Transition Unit. During the transition from inpatient to outpatient care, which can take months, even years, the center will provide wounded troops and their families with tangible and intangible support. Families will have access to a setting that offers relief amid the rigors of rehabilitation and reintegration as well as the practical elements of day-to-day living, a bastion of comfort on the march out of disability.
The center at Fort Belvoir will be a high-end, 25,000 square foot facility where wounded soldiers and their families can find respite and renewal in “home away from home” surroundings. The center will be operated by the USO of Metropolitan Washington.
The Wounded Warrior and Family Center at Fort Belvoir will be part of USO | Wounded Warriors, the comprehensive long-term program to create a “community of care” to give these warriors and their families the best chance for better lives. As our troops and their families face challenges on the path to recovery, the USO will ensure that Americans returning from combat zones have every opportunity to lead fulfilling lives by meeting their needs directly or through best-in class partnerships. As the USO looks at the continuum of care needed for troops and their families, we are outlining the help needed from point of injury on the battlefield to reentry into their local community.
The USO has undertaken a capital fundraising campaign, Operation Enduring Care, to provide resources for USO | Wounded Warriors which will be used to create programs and partner with best-in-class organizations, as well as build two Wounded Warrior and Family Centers, one at Fort Belvoir and one at the new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center at Bethesda. Operation Enduring Care will underwrite construction of these two centers and create an endowment to cover the cost of operations and maintain them to serve Americans injured in combat and their families. 100% of all cash and cash-equivalent contributions will go to the initiative that supports wounded warriors. No funds will go to administration or overhead.
Turner Construction’s major commitment to the USO consists of a combination of gifts in-kind, financial resources and the undertaking of a significant fundraising effort to benefit the Fort Belvoir project.
“Community involvement is an important part of Turner’s heritage and culture. We are proud to be a part of the new center to benefit U.S. Military personnel and their families,” said Christian Jahrling, Vice President and General Manager of Turner Federal Services.
“We’re excited to have Turner Construction as a partner on this immensely important project, “ Sloan Gibson, USO President and CEO, said. "This is the USO’s biggest undertaking in its 70-year history. With Turner as a partner and with the support of the company’s subcontractors and other Americans, we will have a positive impact on the life of every wounded warrior who passes through these centers as well as their families.”
In 2007 and 2008, Turner completed the gratis fit-outs of well-deserved USO lounges at Dulles International Airport and Reagan National Airport. The 800 square foot USO lounge at Dulles initially opened with Internet service, a snack bar, a wide screen TV and an information desk used by military personnel and their families during their travels. The 780 square foot lounge at Reagan provides similar comforts and serves as a relaxing retreat for service members and their families. Three years later, the demand on the Dulles facility was so great, that Turner signed on to assist with nearly doubling the size of the USO lounge. In January 2011, the newly expanded 1,200 square foot facility opened with a new computer lab; sleep room and a larger area for luggage storage. To date, the Dulles USO assists an average of 2,300 service members and their families per month while the lounge at Reagan National serves an average of 1,500 people per month.
Gayle Fishel
703-908-6433
gfishel@uso.org
About the USO
The USO (United Service Organizations) lifts the spirits of America’s troops and their families millions of times each year at hundreds of places worldwide. We provide a touch of home through centers at airports and military bases, top quality entertainment and innovative programs and services. We also provide critical support to those who need us most, including forward-deployed troops and their families, wounded warriors and their families and the families of the fallen.
The USO is a private, non-profit organization, not a government agency. We rely on the generosity of our volunteers and donors. In addition to individual donors and other corporate sponsors, the USO is supported by Worldwide Strategic Partners: American Airlines, AT&T Inc., BAE Systems, The Boeing Company, Clear Channel Communications, The Coca-Cola Company, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft Corporation, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Procter & Gamble and TriWest Healthcare Alliance. We are also supported through the United Way and Combined Federal Campaign (CFC-11381). To join us in this patriotic mission and to learn more about the USO, please visit www.uso.org.
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