Wenatchee Valley Veterans Hall holds open house

WENATCEE - The honored veterans of the Wenatchee Valley Veterans Hall invited the community to their Open House May 19-21 in their new building at 1206 N. Wenatchee Ave., the former banquet room in the Fraternal Order of the Eagles in Wenatchee. The local veteran organizers have pounded the pavement since 2020, receiving countless donations of time and effort, in-kind donations of building materials, luxurious kitchen top slabs and new carpet in the 3,000 square foot space. There were also donations of carpentry skill, including the Honor Board taking up the full west wall, housing plaquettes of donor names, officers, and honorees like The Bunker, another local veterans group, giving them their second donation.

This was an opportunity for the community to see the new Wenatchee Valley Veterans Hall made possible by City of Wenatchee Mayor Frank Kuntz who leased the Hall for the benefits of the veterans in the area, and for community members, and veterans who donated time, services, and financial support.

“We hope people come to visit and see the legacy they helped build at the Vet Hall.” said Bob Ashford a Board Member.

Banner flags of fallen soldiers donated by the Wenatchee Downtown Association line the hall leading in and proudly surrounding the space with local faces of patriotism. Respectfully hung by the local Thomas A Biddle Foundation, are two flags around the banner of Thomas “Allen” Biddle, a fallen active-duty military soldier fallen to suicide. The Blue Star flag was presented to mothers of active-duty military soldiers and the Gold Star with blue outline flag was given to mothers of fallen military soldiers in active-duty.

The Vet Hall is a place for veterans to gather, a location for veterans to use, and is a resource for connecting veterans with additional veteran service organizations in the community.

 “The most rewarding part of this is seeing vets helping other vets.” said Army vet George Turner, crediting help from Douglas County Veterans Service Officer and Air Force veteran Sarah Simonson.

The Vet Hall is also home to a certified DAV Service Officer, Marine and Army vet Ron Bruno, who supports local veterans with disability claims and enrolling veterans in benefits, and he is there on Tuesday mornings and by contacting 509-679-2359 or ron.bruno@frontier.com.

The Wenatchee Valley Vet Hall was proudly “built by veterans for veterans” and is here to support the greater region of North Central Washington. The Wenatchee Valley Veterans Hall is a 501(c)(3) tax deductible corporation and the facility is available for meetings at no cost for veterans or to the community via a veteran by donations which are saved to use for future maintenance. It can accommodate 250 people and they even have the chairs and tables on site. For more information visit www.facebook.com/WenValleyVetsHall or they welcome vets weekly at the Vet Hall on Tuesday mornings for coffee and camaraderie from 8-11 a.m.