Welcome Home - A Podcast for Veterans, About Veterans, By Veterans

Inside Fisher House: How Free Lodging Keeps Veterans’ Families Close

• Larry Zilliox • Season 3 • Episode 133

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What if a warm, welcoming home sat steps away from the hospital where your loved one is fighting to heal—and it cost your family nothing? We open the door to Fisher House, the nationwide network of free lodging for military and veteran families that turns proximity into peace of mind. Julie Riggs, Vice President of Community Relations at Fisher House Foundation, joins us to share how these homes are built, who they serve, and why a shared kitchen can become the most important room in healthcare.

We trace Fisher House’s growth from early eight-suite homes to today’s 16-suite sweet spot, then look ahead to new builds in Montrose, New York, a fully accessible replacement in West Palm Beach, and the first house in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Julie explains the funding model—Fisher House raises capital and constructs each property, then gifts it to the Department of Defense or VA for staffing and upkeep—so listeners see exactly how donations become bricks, beds, and breathing room for caregivers. We talk eligibility, the reality of months-long stays after severe injuries, and the simple ritual of cooking that binds families into a lasting support network.

When houses are full, Hero Programs keep families covered. Their Hotels for Heroes program steps in with paid hotel stays until a suite becomes available. At the same time, the Hero Miles program turns donated airline miles and hotel points into travel and lodging, allowing caregivers to attend to their duties and service members in treatment to fly home on leave. Along the way, we unpack occupancy patterns, the sites that run near capacity, and the outreach that helps nurses and case managers refer families at the right time. Want to help? Gift cards, new unopened consumables, hygiene kits, miles, and points make an immediate difference—and yes, your local Fisher House manager will gladly share a current needs list.

If this conversation moved you, share it with a friend, subscribe for more stories that matter, and leave a quick review so others can find the show. And if you’re ready to act, visit fisherhouse.org to donate, give miles or points, or connect your community group with a local house.

Larry Zilliox:

Good morning. I'm your host, Larry Zilliox, Director of Culinary Services here at the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run. And this week our guest is Julie Riggs. She's vice president of community relations for Fisher House. And I'm sure most of our listeners have heard about Fisher House, but for those who haven't, and even those who have, I think you'll be surprised at the extent of their services and everything that they offer. So it's great to have Julie here. She is actually a repeat guest. She had previously been on and for her role with Blue Star Families, another amazing organization. Julie, welcome back to the podcast.

Julie Riggs:

Thank you, Larry. Glad to be back.

Larry Zilliox:

Tell us a little bit about what you do as the vice president of community relations.

Julie Riggs:

Absolutely. Well, my role specifically and my team's role is to support the communities that either have an existing Fisher House or a community that will be getting a new Fisher House. And so we work collaboratively with the medical treatment facility where the house will be located, as well as local veteran service organizations, military service organizations, entities like the DAR or other local groups that are interested in supporting their local veterans and military through the Fisher House. And so we we collaborate that support.

Larry Zilliox:

So listeners, for those who don't know, there are a hundred uh houses in operation. I'm looking at the webpage right now. And uh the webpage is fisherhouse.org O-R-G. I want everybody to go there and check it out. But um a hundred houses in operation, uh, five hundred and thirty-four thousand families served, six hundred and fifty million dollars in savings to family, which are a result of offering families free housing while they're visiting loved ones in the hospital system there. And uh so you mentioned uh communities that are interested in putting in a having a Fisher house associated with a medical facility nearby. Uh are there some in the works?

Julie Riggs:

Absolutely. We actually just broke ground on the new Fisher House that will be in Montrose, New York at the Hudson Valley VA Medical Center in upstate New York. So September 15th, we put the first shovel under the ground on that one. And um, so that's the next one that will open. Um, we also have in Design Pittsburgh, um, West Palm, Florida, West Palm Beach, Florida, excuse me, as a replacement house, one that's better equipped for um um accessibility. We are excited that we'll be building our first house in San Juan, Puerto Rico, um, as well as um we've planned for uh Perry Point, Maryland, Asheville, North Carolina. We've got quite a long list of houses that um are um pending, but those ones that I mentioned are in the next year or two. Uh we'll be focusing on those.

Larry Zilliox:

Listeners, Fisher House isn't just at military hospitals, as Julie mentioned. They're gonna be next to a VA here in Virginia. They have one uh down at McGuire VA Hospital down near Richmond. Uh so they support not only active duty soldiers and families, but veteran families as well. Because as we know, veterans are constantly going into the VA hospitals for care, so uh especially our elderly veterans. And it's just amazing to have this house nearby where the family can stay at no cost while they are visiting or staying their loved one is in the hospital, which is um phenomenal. What does it take to put a Fisher house in the community? Who funds it? Is it public donations or is Fisher House?

Julie Riggs:

Yeah, it's a combination. So Fisher House Foundation, which is the um uh headquartered nonprofit, uh, we raise the um money for to build the houses. Um so we build the houses, um, oftentimes in conjunction with community groups who also raise money. We call them friends of Fisher House and private donors and um people who are interested maybe in if they see if Fisher House is going in their local community, individual donors might give, but it pretty much filters through our foundation. Um, and we raise the money um to build the houses. Um, they're about at the moment, um, a 16-suite house is about $12 million to build. Um, and so we raise the capital along with all of our partners and then um build the house, and then we give the house back as a gift to the Department of Defense or VA. Um, so then the they take those upon completion, um, they take the houses and become responsible for operation and maintenance in perpetuity of those houses.

Larry Zilliox:

Okay. And and then the uh folks who work are employed at the Fisher House than are DOD or VA employees?

Speaker 2:

Correct.

Larry Zilliox:

Yes. Okay. All right. But they're there's also staffed by a large number of volunteers. I mean, there are a lot of people that want to help.

Julie Riggs:

Oh, there are. Um, volunteerism is one of the biggest um contributions to the houses. Um, communities do really wrap themselves around a fisher house when it gets built. And uh, and we want them to. I mean, it's their house that is for their community. Um, and so so many people will come in and volunteer. And if people are interested in volunteering in a local fisher house, they can reach directly out to the manager of that fisher house and ask, you know, what needs to be done. Sometimes volunteers will come in and do like a, you know, a spring refresh of the landscaping. Sometimes they'll come in and cook meals for families who are at the hospital so that when they come back, they have a warm meal to, you know, eat before they go up to bed or something. Um, there's a there's a number of things that can happen. Holidays are great. People love to come in and decorate for the holidays at a Fisher house because just because it's the holidays or just because it's, you know, downtime for other people doesn't mean, you know, when people are in the hospital, their families want to be near them. And so our houses are usually full 365 days a year, not full, but you know what I mean? There's people there at 365. So yeah.

Larry Zilliox:

So who can stay at Fisher House?

Julie Riggs:

Absolutely. So the houses are built to be a home away from home for families of patients receiving medical care at a major militar military or VA medical facility. So the families of the active duty or veteran who is receiving that care. Um, family can be defined pretty broadly. So if your sister is your caregiver and you're a veteran and you're going in for a surgery, your sister is identified as family and could stay at a fisher house while you're in that episode of care. Um, you know, um, there are times when people are going into hospice and they have a larger, broader um group of family who will come to a fisher house and stay as that person finishes, you know, their life there in hospice. And so it really it just depends. So it's the caregiver and family members of the um person who's in who's receiving the care that are at the house.

Larry Zilliox:

Is there a limit on how long somebody can stay?

Julie Riggs:

There isn't. As long as there is an episode, an active episode of care occurring. Um people have stayed for years, actually. Um, you know, and when someone has maybe had a training accident and ends up unexpectedly in a hospital and has multiple surgeries, their family picks up everything and comes and stays at a fisher house for months on end while that while the person, their loved one is receiving the care they need. Um so it's always at no cost. And um and you know, they can stay as long as they need to, as long as that person is still receiving care.

Larry Zilliox:

And while they're there, how are meals handled?

Julie Riggs:

So the fisher houses don't actually provide the meals for the families as one of the um, you know, guest amenities. However, often, as I mentioned, volunteers will come and um make meals, stock the refrigerator or freezers with pre-made meals so that you can just grab one to throw it in the microwave when you get back from the late long day at the hospital. Um, our groups that support many of them will donate uh grab and go food items or fill the freezer. You often will find, you will not often find an empty refrigerator at a fisher house. So even though there's not a breakfast, lunch, and dinner service provided, uh, there's always food. But the the houses all have our uh amazing state-of-the-art kitchens, and each family is given a cup, a cabinet, and a shelf on the refrigerator. They have access to all of the pots and pans. They can cook their own meals. And I don't know, Larry, if you've ever traveled. I know when when we would PCS, the first thing I would do when we would get into that TLA after having been on the road forever is to like, I just make a pot of spaghetti because I just wanted to cook something, you know? It's just like kind of settles you. And um, so we find that those kitchens become this center of community in our fisher houses. And people are coming back from the hospital and they're making bread and they're cooking some dinner and they're talking about what's going on with their lives and they're connecting with other families, and those relationships are just invaluable. I mean, those those those last well beyond their stay at the fisher house.

Larry Zilliox:

Well, it also is is extremely valuable to have other people around you that are going through the same thing as a sort of support network, which is really wonderful.

Julie Riggs:

Yeah, absolutely.

Larry Zilliox:

And and so you could have you could have like five, ten different families staying at the same time, right? Yeah.

Julie Riggs:

Yep. Our small houses, um, when we first started building them were eight suite houses. And pretty quickly we uh places would outgrow those, and then we'd have to build a second fisher house. Um and so um, and then we started building the 20-suite house. Um and um we have found that the 16 suite is sort of the sweet spot, if you will. So there would be 16 rooms that have their own um private bathrooms, and so that would be 16, you know, families staying in that house at any given time.

Larry Zilliox:

Wow. What happens if the Fisher house is full and we have somebody coming into the area because of a service member who's been injured or a veteran that needs surgery? Is there is there some other organization that could provide help and support while they seek um refuge in the community, like at a hotel or something like that, or are they on their own?

Julie Riggs:

No, absolutely. So we have um our hero programs is also a part of the Fisher House Foundation portfolio. And hero programs include um our um hotels for heroes. And so um we, if a family has been referred to a Fisher House and the Fisher House is unable to accommodate that family due to um, you know, um not having the room, the manager will call our team and our team will immediately uh reach out to a hotel and pay for that hotel stay until the space at the Fisher House becomes available. So the family will um not be told no, they just may start their journey uh at the hotel and then they would move into the Fisher House as soon as space became available.

Larry Zilliox:

And I see that you guys also have a program called Hero Miles, which uh really caught my attention because it helps families with transportation issues if they can't afford to fly in because you know they've suddenly um, you know, a a warrior's been injured and they've been sent to Walter Reed or Fort Belvore and they can't afford to fly. Fisher House can help them with that. But one of the things that really caught my attention is that Fisher House provides round trip airfare and tickets for service members who are in treatment who want to go on leave and go home and visit their family, which I thought was wonderful.

Julie Riggs:

And all of those um Hero Miles programs and also Hotels for Heroes, they come from donations from people of their unused miles and hotel stays. So um, um, as well as partnerships with the airlines and and hotels. But people will often at the end of the year they have points they're gonna lose or or whatever, and we have agreements with them um, you know, some of the hotels that if the person donates their their um hotel um nights, um, then we can use them for for this um and as well as airline miles. So it is really it's an amazing program for people to give back if they if they want to in that way and know that they their donation is going to support, like you said, you know, a service member who maybe is getting medical care and then wants to go home and and and see their family for a little while.

Larry Zilliox:

Sure, especially especially around Christmas or Thanksgiving. Um Exactly. That's I mean nobody wants to sit around at Walter Reed over Christmas. Yeah, for sure. And yeah, listeners, you can donate those miles right on their webpage, fisherhouse.org. Um, if you go to their program section and you click on like Hotel for Heroes, there's a list of different hotels there. You can click on like Best Western and it'll walk you through the process of donating your miles or your points there. And certainly if they're uh gonna expire, you wanna uh go ahead and donate them. And I'm sure that once they're donated, the hotels and the airlines uh that they no longer are set to expire. Is that right?

Julie Riggs:

Correct. We've got agreements with them. Yes.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah, well that's that's awesome. Um Yeah. How how is this a seasonal thing? Is there is there times when Fisher houses are full and then other times of the year or when when it's down? How does it get it?

Julie Riggs:

You know, I think it it varies by house, to be honest with you. Um, some of our houses, it really depends on the medical treatment facility that they're supporting and the um rhythm or cadence of their their surgeries or their um appointments. We actually see less people in Fisher houses during the holidays because people tend to not schedule a surgery if they can help it over the holidays. So the houses will typically be much um um smaller in size of guests, you know, and it just it really does does depend. I mean, there's there's um I'm thinking of Lackland Air Force Base, um, and they have the um uh the clinic where you can get the eye surgery. Um it's elective. I'm trying to remember the name of it, but where, you know, people can go in and get their um eyesight improved. Um, and and so they're eligible to stay at the Fisher House while they're there. And um, so um those types of surgeries, when those are happening, we might have a handful of people in the Fisher House that are actually at in that program, right? Um, so it just really depends what um the medical treatment facility or VA hospital specializes in and how many people they see. Um, you know, the polytrauma units, those houses tend to be very busy. Um and uh the stays tend to be longer. Yeah. So it just does really vary.

Larry Zilliox:

Are there certain houses that are constantly always full? Some like some of the bigger inst uh installations and hospitals like Walter Reed, like Fort Sam Houston, those kinds.

Julie Riggs:

Yes. So the um, yeah, there are like I know one of ours that's always seems to be very full is uh Charleston, South Carolina. We have an amazing manager there who does a lot of outreach to case managers and to hospital nurses and lets them know that the Fisher House is an option for you know people coming in. And it's that sort of word of mouth in the middle, also in the military or sorry, the medical community to know to refer a patient to a Fisher house because and knowing the eligibility. So, you know, the house manager does a great deal of outreach to make sure that the nurses all know that if a family comes in and it looks like they might qualify, make sure you give us a call. And he runs at about 95% occupancy on a regular basis. Um, the Fisher houses at Walter Reed, um, there were two of them. Um, as you can imagine, during um the height of the OIF OEF conflict, um, there were a lot of people at Walter Reed as one of the primary places that people were sent for um care. And now there are five Fisher houses at uh at Walter Reed um in Bethesda. So um, yes, they tend to be um pretty busy there as well. So yeah, it just depends on the um the hospital and the volume that they do as well.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah. Well, let me tell you, uh, hotel rooms in Charleston are not cheap. So I I can imagine, I can imagine that that is pretty full, and that's just great. I mean, that's the whole purpose behind this thing, yeah, is to say, hey, how you know, we you don't need to spend three hundred dollars a night. Right. Yeah. That's exactly because that's uh that's a burden for most families, it really is.

Julie Riggs:

It is, and you know what we've also heard time and time again is about people who would not have come to do a surgery or get a treatment because if they hadn't heard about the Fisher House because they couldn't afford it, or they wanted their spouse with them or their caregiver with them, and they they couldn't afford to put that person up in a hotel. And so people will elect not to get treatments that are needed because they don't want to be alone in the process. And so, you know, so many times we hear, you know, these life-saving treatments, someone, you know, found cancer early or something because they they did go and get the scan they needed to get because they knew they could have their family with them at a fisher house. And it's just, you know, it fills my heart to know that we're we're providing that service for people.

Larry Zilliox:

Uh what's the what's the one or two kind of top things that just generally speaking, a fisher house in someone's area would need donated?

Julie Riggs:

A lot of your main, you know, stables, um, toilet paper, um uh consumables, yes, the um snacks, always I mean snacks are always helpful, coffee, uh, welcome, little welcome bags of um um, what am I trying to say? Um like shampoo and you know, uh chair kits or whatever, um, those type of things. A lot of times people will assemble those and then drop them off at a fisher house. And you know, more and more, if I'm being honest with you, gift cards for families um who maybe want to grab an um, you know, a meal off base or something um or in the community, or maybe even a gift card for them to go grab some groceries before they head home because they've been um away from home. So the refrigerator is going to be empty when they get there. Um we are seeing, you know, food insecurity in in in our in our veteran population and uh and our active duty population as well. And um, so our our house managers will often have a stack of gift cards and they'll give them to families in need as they walk out the door as well.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah, great. And listeners, let's let's be clear about making donations like that here at Fisher House. Okay. When it comes to snacks, when it comes to food like that, this is not stuff that's been laying around your pantry until it's you know expired three years later earlier. Um this is stuff you want to go out and buy and donate it then. It's the same for these the the the little shampoo bottles and things, not half used. Don't don't find something that you used at a hotel and then brought it home with you. New stuff, please. Not uh not used uh consumables. So but also give your local uh Fisher House a call and say, Hey, what do you need? You know, maybe it's something your church group can put together. And I guarantee I guarantee you they're gonna have a list of consumables. And they'll say, We need paper towels, we need toilet paper, we need snacks, we need sodas, we need water. They're gonna have a list for you, and your community group, your boy scouts, your girl scouts, your your uh your church group, they can all kind of put together. And when when you got a group of people, what's really nice is that it's it doesn't cost much for one person to donate one thing, and before you know it, you got uh 40 40 items, and that's a substantial uh donation. That helps. So please consider doing that. Um also I want to again direct our listeners to the web page, which is Fisherhouse.org, and they're gonna see up in that right hand corner a donate button. Go ahead and uh hit that donate button, bang on it, and give what you can. Um Fisher House is a renowned organization that's been around for a long, long time. I've known Julie for a long, long time, and I know that she wouldn't be hooked up with any fly by night operation. Very true. So um you your money will really be uh shepherded and and used wisely, I guarantee it. Um and this is such a great organization because it they fulfill uh a need that no one else does. There are organizations that come close and like Yellow Ribbon for transportation and Blue Star families and all sorts of organizations that are out there. But you know, other than USOs that have a physical property and location, nobody else does anything like this where they're they're just building a $12 million house for people to stay in for free. And uh, you know, it's just it's just an amazing, amazing, amazing organization. So Julie, one last thing. Um where do you see Fisher House in five years?

Julie Riggs:

Well, I think we'll probably have a handful more houses. Um, I don't I don't think that the need's ever gonna go away. I mean, um medical care is something that continues um to be needed um uh by both our active duty population and our veteran population. And um, so we are, you know, forever grateful to the people who fund us to be able to continue to build these amazing houses. We're you know absolutely grateful that we get to continue to bless um our um, you know, our those families and our veterans and our military by and being able to say thank you for what they've done and show that there are people who do care and support. So I think we'll be uh we'll be a little bit bigger um and have a few more options for houses to stay at. But I, you know, we since 1990, we've we've built houses and um provided that home away from home for families and patients receiving medical care. So that's what we're gonna keep doing. That's that's what we do.

Larry Zilliox:

Well, we thank you so much because you do it so well and uh it's it's an incredible service that you guys offer. So thanks. Uh thanks so much for coming on and telling us all about it.

Julie Riggs:

Yeah, thank you. I appreciate the time and and uh getting the word out.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah. Well, listeners, uh, we'll have another episode next Monday morning at 0500. If you have any questions or suggestions, you can reach us at podcast at willing warriors.org. You can find us on all the major podcast platforms. We're also on YouTube and Wreaths Across America Radio. So until then, thanks for listening.

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