By Sandy Meyer
My Warrior’s Place recently held a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate commencement of construction on its newest building. The additional unit will be a three-bedroom, two bath all-wheelchair accessible housing facility. My Warrior’s Place currently accommodates up to eight families at a time on a tranquil, waterfront property in Ruskin. Many of the current units on the property offer one or two bedroom options. The new unit will allow larger families and those needing wheelchair accommodations a comfortable place to stay.
My Warrior’s Place was created by Kelly Kowall in memory of her 20-year-old son, Corey, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2009. My Warrior’s Place is a Retreat Center for veterans, military service members, first responders, Gold Star, Blue Star and Silver Star families.
The center offers several amazing programs for those who have put their life on the line for the safety and wellbeing of others, endured the death of a Fallen Warrior and/or experienced the horrors of war. Each program offered by My Warrior’s Place plays an important role in the healing and coping process, and the support that is obtained through these programs is priceless.
While there is a long list of companies that have jumped on board for this worthy project, some of the companies volunteering labor and materials include National Gypsum Company, Cardinal Roofing, Howie’s Plumbing, Electric Today and Southwestern Supply. In addition, Home Depot extended a $20,000 grant to My Warrior’s Place to cover additional expenses.
“This is an all-volunteer force on this project. If anyone wants to volunteer their services, we’d love to have them. We need skilled labor but we also need people to get things and run errands,” said Kowall. “It is being built in entirety by donations, mostly by local companies,” said Kowall. “This is truly a community effort and would not be able to be done without the community support.” Visit mywarriorsplace.org or call 321-0880.
