Fisher House 2023 Impact Report

OUR IMPACT

Keeping military and veteran families together

Since 1990, Fisher Houses have provided a home away from home for military and veteran families. Nearly 100 Fisher Houses across the country and overseas give families comfort and peace while their loved ones receive medical care at major military and VA medical centers around the world.

A place to heal

More than half a million military and veteran families have stayed in a Fisher House. Along with the Hero Programs and scholarships, Fisher House Foundation has helped families save more than $610 million.

with loved ones nearby

Fisher House Foundation honors the sacrifice and service of our military and veteran heroes and those who stand by their side by serving veterans of all eras. Fisher Houses provide peace of mind and the dignity and respect service members, veterans, and their families deserve while receiving medical treatment.

Fisher Houses are a symbol of our unwavering support for military and veteran families today and for years to come.

Cover: Army Veteran Lupe Nimetullahlah and her daughter Lakeisha Samilton stayed at the Fort Belvoir Army Fisher House while Keisha waited for and recovered from a heart transplant.

Above: The Daniels, an Air Force family, found comfort at Fisher House when they faced months of unknowns after Cathleen gave birth to a baby at 23 weeks of gestation.

Opposite: A second Fisher House was dedicated at the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center in Bay Pines, Florida in October 2023. Fisher Houses remove the burden of lodging costs and allow families to focus on what matters most—recovery. In 2023, 45,000 families stayed at Fisher Houses at no cost to them, saving more than $35 million. Since the first Fisher House opened its doors, the impact has been profound.

Lupe and Keisha

In 2020, LaKeisha (Keisha) Samilton was diagnosed with sarcoidosis of the heart and the lungs, but it wasn’t until 2023 that she suddenly felt ill and was medically evacuated from the hospital near her home in Hampton, Virginia to a hospital several hours away in Northern Virginia.

Army veteran and mother Lupe Nimetullahlah traveled to be with her daughter who needed a heart transplant because Keisha was barely functioning on 10% of her heart. At first, Lupe stayed with Keisha’s best friend, but she soon realized they would need a longer-term solution and sought a small apartment. The costs were incredibly high and nearly impossible to sustain. Fortunately, Lupe was connected to a patient relations employee who told her about the Fort Belvoir Army Fisher House at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

Keisha and Lupe found peace in the comfort of the Fisher House while Keisha recovered.

“It means everything. I couldn’t do any of this. I’m so thankful that she’s here,” said Keisha. “Her being here takes a load off me, too. Fisher House means a lot. It allows us to be here and connect and things like that. But her being here is everything.”

“It’s a home away from home. It’s peace. It is amazing,” said Lupe. “Thank God it came through, Fisher House.”

Since 1990, Fisher Houses have saved more than 500,000 military and veteran families over $610 million.

HERO PROGRAMS

The Hero Miles program, which uses donated frequent flyer miles to purchase airline tickets, and Hotels for Heroes, which uses donated hotel points, have saved $124 million for military and veteran families since inception.

Air Force Maj. Dan Campbell and his wife Heather experienced many uncertainties when their 9-year-old son, Isaiah, was diagnosed with subglottic stenosis, or narrowing of the airway, which would require major surgery. Stationed in remote Alaska, they wondered how to keep the family together for the nearly 2,500-mile journey for his medical care.

The Campbells were able to use patient travel to cover the cost of one parent and their son, but that would leave one parent and their two other children behind. That’s when Hero Miles stepped in.

Mom of three, Heather, explained how important it was for them to be together as a family during Isaac’s surgery and how imperative she felt it was to his recovery.

“Words cannot express my gratitude or convey the burden Hero Miles lifted during my stressful time. Being together meant everything to my family.”

The Campbell Family

Added in 2023

Bay Pines VA Healthcare System (Second House); Bay Pines, Florida

Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital; Columbia, Missouri

Houses under construction:

Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans’ Hospital (Second House)—San Antonio, Texas

Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr. VA Medical Center— Memphis, Tennessee

John D. Dingell VA Medical Center—Detroit, Michigan

Houses in design:

Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System—Little Rock, Arkansas

Joseph Maxwell Cleland Atlanta VA Medical Center—Atlanta, Georgia

Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center—North Chicago, Illinois

Hospital de Veteranos (VA Caribbean Healthcare System)—San Juan, Puerto Rico

= existing houses = houses under construction Numbers in parentheses indicate multiple houses at one location.

96 FISHER HOUSES (and

counting*)

ACROSS 35 STATES, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND EUROPE

Birmingham, UK

Landstuhl, Germany

* As of Dec. 31, 2023 (2)

Fisher House Foundation awarded over $2.8 million in scholarships in 2023, helping more than 1,260 students achieve their educational goals.

Three-time scholarship recipient Caleb Pipes is grateful for receiving financial assistance again in 2023, and he also relates to Fisher House’s primary mission.

At just 14 years old, Caleb was diagnosed with cancer. At the time, the Pipes Family was stationed in Nepal, where his father, Greg, was serving in an Army assignment. The family of five was separated when Caleb returned stateside to start treatment in California. Six years later, Caleb is cancer-free and focuses on his life as a college student.

He credits family support and resiliency as part of the reason for a positive outcome. “I was very blessed while I was going through my treatment. I had a lot of people with me,” Caleb said.

Caleb is currently studying engineering at Allegheny College in Pennsylvania, where he dreams of pursuing a career in the field of aquatic robots.

“[The Scholarship for Military Children] has allowed me to pursue my passions, to pursue my goals, and offset the high cost of schooling,” Caleb said.

Caleb is unsure what his future holds, but he may continue embracing the military lifestyle after an internship with the Navy as a lab researcher.

Caleb Pipes

The Kuwada Family

Joey and Garrett Kuwada played volleyball on their first date. The athletic, dual-Air Force couple fell in love and eventually married and had kids. Joey left the Air Force to raise their family and Garrett worked toward a military retirement. But then Garrett suffered a sudden aneurysm that nearly ended his life.

Garrett survived but struggled with depression and finding a purpose as he required a wheelchair and could no longer serve in the Air Force.

“I forced him to go to an adaptive sports event,” Joey said, “and it pretty much changed his life. And it changed our life because then, once I saw him getting excited and doing stuff again that he really enjoyed, then it got me happy and excited. And it really saved, not only his life but our marriage as well.”

Fisher House Foundation supported the Kuwada Family at the Warrior Games and Invictus Games as part of Garrett’s recovery. The events give competitors a chance to showcase their and their families’ successes after illness, injury, or combat wounds.

Fisher House Foundation has sponsored all Invictus Games and Warrior Games family programs since they began, bringing families together to cheer on their loved ones as they show how far they have come.

PROGRAMS

Military and veteran families can focus on the care of their loved ones thanks to you. Throughout their medical journeys, families can stay together. Through Fisher Houses, scholarships, and the Hero Miles and Hotels for Heroes programs, families have the support needed to stay strong and resilient together.

You continue to ensure this program will be here for future generations of veterans by donating your time, talent, and treasure through volunteering, donations, fundraisers, and more. With your help, we can continue to show our gratitude to our nation’s heroes.

Thanks to you...

Fisher House Foundation is grateful you are traveling along the Road to 100 Fisher Houses with us. While this is an incredible milestone to celebrate, we know that the need continues and that our work is not done. It’s just the start of the next generation of Fisher Houses built to support military and veteran families for years to come.

At Fisher House, we know honoring the service and sacrifice of all those who have served in our nation’s uniform is a sacred responsibility and that the loved ones who serve by their side deserve our unwavering support.

on the road to

100 FISHER HOUSES

Fisher House Foundation thanks you for joining us on the Road to 100 Fisher Houses.