Warrior Center Celebrates a Year of Comfort

General Carter Ham, Private First Class Jesse Hamilton, and Sergeant Sheena Whitney cut the ribbon, opening the USO Warrior Center at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center October 21, 2008. USO Photo by Jaime Goloyugo

When wounded warriors first walk into the USO Warrior Center at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, the first thing they notice is how large it is. But then they start using the phones and attending barbecues, getting a break from medical treatments and the hospital.

That's when they begin to understand that the USO isn't just a place, it's a home. And many can't believe that the Center is just for them.

Today, the USO Warrior Center celebrates its one-year anniversary. Since its doors opened, the President of the United States has pinned on Purple Hearts, the Secretary of Defense has shaken hands, and Gary Sinise has stopped by to show his appreciation. What happens at the Center every day, though, is simpler. It's a home-cooked meal, it's watching a movie, it's a place wounded warriors can get away from it all.

"If this (Warrior Center) wasn't here I'd be sitting in my barrack's room going crazy," said National Guard Major Jeffrey McElhaney, who has spent several weeks recently at Landstuhl recovering from wounds after a mortar attack in Afghanistan.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates at the USO Warrior Center in Landstuhl, Germany, July 1, 2009.

"We've been hanging out and just getting better, day by day," McElhaney said. The volunteers have treated him so well that when he gets back home after his current deployment, he's hoping to volunteer at a USO himself.

For the 42,488 men and women who have used the Center during the past year, most have been severely wounded and need time to recover before heading back to the field. The Warrior Center puts family back home a phone call or Internet video chat away when they need it most.

The state-of-the-art, 4,000-square-foot Center has free phone access, computers, electric guitars, a 50-inch plasma television with a DVD library, along with gaming systems and a fully stocked kitchen. But it's the feeling of being home - especially the Center staff who welcome them - that makes the biggest difference.

"They'll bend over backwards to do what you need done," Army Sergeant Florian Barrie said of the Center's staff and volunteers. "I can speak for a lot of soldiers. When we're in here, we don't usually think about whatever medical problems we have. It's just a fun time to hang out and get your mind off bad things."

But it is the dinner table that is truly the center of the USO Warrior Center. Whether it's Thai or Italian or good ol' pizza, having a place to eat a homemade meal and chat with the "USO Ladies," as they call themselves, the USO's kitchen table has become a gathering place for sharing stories and experiences, reminiscing about home, or just joking around.

Members of the National Cartoonists Society entertain warriors at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center on a USO Tour, 2008. USO Photo

"The guys sitting there talking to us when we cook and serve food... it's just like being at home, when you're with your family," said Melissa Parkins, the center manager. "They become a part of the family."

Among the stories from the past year Parkins remembers well is when she spotted a young Marine, looking sad at one of the Center's barbecues.

"I was really sad and homesick when I got here," the Marine told Parkins. "And now I'm here, and there's a barbecue." Parkins could see what it meant to him.

The line of celebrities and VIPs that visit the Center remind wounded warriors that they are not forgotten. Among those VIPs has been the Commander-in-Chief, President Barack Obama, who visited June 5. USO staff said he shook all of the wounded warriors' hands at the Center and said, "You guys are my first thought when I wake up and in my prayers every night."

For Carol Sharpe, the Center's assistant manager, the highest compliment is when wounded warriors tell her that the USO not only allowed them to take their mind off things, but also helped them heal.

"The best compliment we get from our wounded warriors is, 'I forgot why I was here,'" Sharpe said. "Everything from syncing an XBox to making a grilled cheese sandwich... we become their home away from home."

Jeremy Borden is a writer for ON★PATROL.