New Lee & Penny Anderson Defenders Lodge in Palo Alto to offer 52 first-class private rooms
May 19, 2014, WASHINGTON – The Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation (PenFed Foundation), announced today the nation’s largest free hotel for service members and veterans undergoing medical care at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System is opening doors. The new Lee & Penny Anderson Defenders Lodge is officially complete, with doors to open for guests today, May 19.
“This project is literally years in the making,” said Jane Whitfield, president and chief executive officer of the PenFed Foundation. “To see this hotel begin welcoming guests who have served this country so honorably is truly an emotional moment for all of us.”
The new Defenders Lodge is expected to serve up to 20,000 service members and veterans annually who travel to Palo Alto for treatment. Last year, thousands had to find temporary housing while receiving care at the VA Palo Alto, many coming from miles away.
To address this crisis, the PenFed Foundation volunteered as the primary sponsor of constructing the hotel, a $17 million initiative in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs. The foundation is working to raise $11 million in private donations to cover the cost of building the lodge. In 2010, PenFed (Pentagon Federal Credit Union) assisted with a $10 million low-interest loan to help get construction underway.
Hometel, the current facility used to accommodate service members and veterans seeking medical care in Palo Alto, stopped taking reservations on May 18. Members of the military and veterans interested in staying at the lodge should contact their local VA rep for more information on making a reservation. The Defenders Lodge will replace Hometel, which has limited capacity, outdated amenities, and is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“I can think of no better way to honor our nation’s wounded military and veterans than with a good night’s rest,” said philanthropist Lee Anderson, who along with his wife Penny, is the primary sponsor of the Defenders Lodge. “It’s truly an honor to be part of such a one-of-a-kind project that will touch the lives of so many of our men and women who served our country.”
