VINELAND, NJ – Governor James E. McGreevey today turned the first shovel and led ground-breaking ceremonies at the site of the new Veterans Memorial Home in Vineland – a state-of-the-art 300-bed facility will consist of 240 long-term care beds, a 32-bed special needs unit and a 28-bed domiciliary/assisted living unit.

Brigadier General Glenn K. Rieth, The Adjutant General, and more than 500 veterans joined the Governor and Vineland Veterans Home residents mark the first phase in construction. The New Jersey Army National Guard’s 63rd Army Band and the New Jersey Air National Guard Color Guard completed the pomp and pageantry of the morning. 

The Governor also announced a series of actions to improve care in veterans’ facilities by attracting additional nursing staff. “Our commitment to our veterans is more than just bricks and mortar,” he said. Developed by a special Nursing Shortage Task Force, and the actions include: (1) A nurse recruiter to implement a more robust, comprehensive marketing strategy statewide. (2) An incentive strategy with nursing bonuses to attract and retain quality nursing staff. (3) Nursing refresher courses with a concentration in long-term care. And (5) Quality of life changes for nurses, such as flexible work schedules and alternative workweeks.

The new Veterans Memorial Home’s construction is financed through a partnership between New Jersey and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. New Jersey contributed approximately 17 million with the VA federally funding the remaining 67%. This $50.4 million project will be constructed in four phases thus allowing continued care of residents during the construction. The new home will be built on the same site as the current buildings. The first phase will begin immediately with the initial site work, including initial building demolition, ground clearing, installation of underground utilities and debris removal. The second phase, to begin around the first of the year, will be the home construction. The third phase, to begin late fall of 2004, will include moving residents into the new home and demolishing the remaining buildings. The last phase, spring of 2005, is the remaining site work and landscaping.

The new home was designed by Nadasky/Kopelson Architects. The project management firm is Gilbane Building Company, Inc. The four prime contractors for this construction are Torchio Brothers, Inc. (general construction), RC Fabricators, Inc. (structural steel), Falasca Plumbing, Heating, Cooling, Inc. (Plumbing and HVAC), and Scalfo Electric, Inc. (Electric.)

The replacement facility will consist of 240 long-term care beds, a 32-bed special needs unit and a 28-bed domiciliary/assisted living unit. The assisted living component will nationally be the first assisted living unit within a state veterans nursing home. The new facility will provide for a full “continuum of care”. Residents can begin in the assisted living unit and as their needs increase move to a more comprehensive care unit, within the same facility. The current Vineland Memorial Home has a 282-bed capacity. It accepted its first resident in January 1900.

“We have worked hard to plan the new facility, to ensure the best physical plan – a state-of-the-art facility – to address the needs and quality of life for our residents,” said Joe Romano, the chief executive officer, Vineland Veterans Memorial Home. The new facility will be fully in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, more esthetically pleasing, improve patient care and staff efficiency, improve the resident quality of life by increasing individual living space and providing more privacy.

Current residents of the Vineland Memorial Home include veterans from World War II, Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm. Eligibility for admission is based on financial and qualified medical needs of (1) veterans who served on active or reserve duty and where honorably discharged, (2) veteran’s spouses and to the spouses and parents of veterans killed in action during war. Spouses must be at least 50 and have been married to the veterans for 10 years or more.

Numerous volunteer organizations and individuals support the Vineland Veterans Memorial Home. These are the people who truly make this facility a “home for our veterans”. The American Legion donated a van to the Vineland Home last year. The VFW donated a handicap accessible bus to the Vineland Home at their annual convention this year. The New Jersey Air National Guard 108th Air Refueling Wing has adopted the Vineland Memorial Home and residents of the Vineland Home recently attend the 108th’s family day at McGuire AFB. Many other organizations that volunteer time and money on a continual basis are: Disabled Americans Veterans (DAV), Jewish War Vets, the Masons, the Elks and the auxiliaries of all these groups. 

The New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Vineland celebrated their centennial January 2000. On January 2, 1900, The New Jersey Soldiers Home for Disabled Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and their Wives and Widows (the home’s original name) opened its doors in Vineland. The original residents worked on the home’s farm and helped prepare their own meals. During this century, the home’s first DC electric lights were installed in 1908 and converted to AC power in 1944; the first motored vehicle was purchased in 1909; a “cold storage plant” (refrigerator and freezer) was installed in 1916; boilers were installed for heat and hot water in 1919; an elevator was installed in 1922; window aerials (radio antenna) were introduced in 1924; a moving picture machine was obtained in 1943; and the first television was donated to the home (by the American Legion) in 1947.

Today the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Vineland is one of three veteran nursing homes operated be the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (NJDMAVA). The residents receive around-the-clock medical and nursing care, rehabilitative and recreational services, special dietary service and other amenities. 

New Jersey, the first state to establish a facility for disabled war veterans, opened the New Jersey Solider Home in Newark on July 4, 1866, to care for disabled Civil War veterans. The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs currently operates three veteran homes with 950 beds. The facilities, all located near major roadways, are in Menlo Park, Paramus and Vineland. NJDMAVA encourages qualified veterans in need of long-term care to apply now.

"One of the most difficult decisions a family must make involves the realization that a family member requires the care that often only a nursing home can provide,” said Deputy Commissioner for Veterans Affairs Col Emil Philibosian. “Just as daunting is the determination of the most appropriate nursing home for the family member as regards standards and levels of care, cost and proximity. For New Jersey's veterans, our state provides the best of care at our Veterans Memorial Homes, located conveniently in Paramus, Menlo Park and Vineland. Our veterans are urged to make application as early as possible in order to avail themselves of this remarkable resource."

For more information on New Jersey's Veterans Memorial Homes or for an application call 609-530-6766.