North Carolina will open its newest full-service State Veterans Home Thursday in Kinston. Residents there can have on-site registered nurses, therapists and service officers to assist with VA benefits to deal with their physical injuries. They will also be either next to, or a short drive from, a local hospital should they need more intensive medical care.
Tim Wipperman is the state's director of veterans affairs. He says each former military man or woman must qualify to stay in these homes. "The veteran must have served in the active armed forces of the United States for other than training purposes," Wipperman says.
"They have to have been discharged under honorable conditions, must be disabled by age, disease or other conditions as determined by a physician, and they must have resided in the state of North Carolina for two years immediately prior to their date of application."
There are three other state veterans homes located in Fayetteville, Salisbury and Black Mountain. Wipperman says they are looking at possibilities for additional facilities but nothing is planned right now.