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Community leaders gather to celebrate veterans' center in Lacey

Olympian (Olympia, WA) - 10/30/2014

Oct. 30--About 100 people were on hand Wednesday to celebrate the opening of the Lacey Veterans Services Office, an office that will provide convenient counseling services for active duty members of the military, veterans and their families in the area.

Thurston County is home to about 21,000 veterans, and many of them live in Lacey, according to city data. Mayor Andy Ryder, who spoke during the dedication ceremony, said that about 50 percent of the city's population benefits directly or indirectly from military-related income.

But veterans in South Sound have to drive to veterans centers in Tacoma or Federal Way for counseling services.

Federal Way Vet Center clinical psychologist Amy Morris, who eventually will work in the Lacey office, said about 25 veterans from Thurston County drive to Federal Way for counseling, while the Tacoma center is thought to be even busier, she said.

So the military is a big deal for Lacey, which led the City Council to approve spending $10,000 to sublease about 1,000 square feet of office space for the veterans office in Building 2 of what used to be known as the Rowe Six complex of office buildings.

The Lacey Veterans Services Office, which is at 4232 Sixth Ave. SE., will open slowly.

It will begin by opening 8 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Tuesdays for appointments with Paul Hanna, a readjustment counseling therapist from the Tacoma Vet Center.

Clinical psychologist Morris is expected to work 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. every other Thursday beginning in January, she said.

Appointments can be scheduled through the Tacoma or Federal Way vet centers. There's also a mobile vet center, an RV, that travels throughout the region and conducts outreach with veterans. It stops the second and fourth Thursdays at Cabela's in Lacey.

Others in attendance Wednesday included Lacey City Council members and city staff, representatives from Saint Martin's University and The Evergreen State College, and elected officials, including State Rep. Graham Hunt and Congressman Denny Heck.

"Every time they walk through that door, they're going to get help," said Heck about veterans and their needs.

In addition to the veterans office, Rowe Six is set to be occupied by the new Lacey campus of South Puget Sound Community College.

Building 1, the largest of the buildings there, is being deconstructed.

SPSCC's President Dr. Timothy Stokes, who also attended the dedication, said the main building is expected to open a year from now.

Rolf Boone: 360-754-5403 rboone@theolympian.com @rolf_boone

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