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Fisher House serving

The Courier of Montgomery County
By Lucretia Fernandez, Courier staff
05.01.08

Finding an affordable place to stay while her husband received treatment at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. was the last thing Lois Hurt wanted to worry about.

While she was offered shelter with other women, there wasn't a place for her husband, and staying at a hotel for 10 days was expensive.

"In the mid-80s, financial situations were slim for all of us," Hurt said. "Everyone else had similar stories because everyone had the same problem."

Hurt shared her story at the Montgomery County Republican Women's Club monthly luncheon last week.

Answering the need were New York philanthropists Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher.

The first Fisher House was built in 1991 to house military families near military and veteran hospitals. Now, 38 Fisher Houses are serving military families across the United States and in Germany. Seven more are under construction.

The Fisher House in Houston opened four years ago and has since served more than 2,500 families.

"In our particular chapter, we have to have limitations on who can stay because 1.5 million vets are assigned to our hospital (the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center)," said Frank Kelley, the Houston Fisher House manager. "We try to keep families with serious medical needs."

The Houston Fisher House was the first 21-bed facility built by the organization. The houses are built to enable families to interact with one another, lending support for each other, Kelley said.

To help accommodate additional families, the Houston Fisher House leases 30 rooms in a nearby motel and has 21 beds at the hospital, Kelley said.

While the organization builds the houses and the medical centers pay for managers' salaries, remaining operational costs are paid for through donations. Many groups also volunteer their time to make the residents dinner and offer additional support.

"We don't want to just give them a place to stay, we want to provide them with a support network," Kelley said.

For more information about the Houston Fisher House or how to get involved, call (713) 794-8095.

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