Valor Home Lorain County

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

From: Samuel Felton, Jr. President Valor Home Lorain County Committee State of Ohio Department of Development Response to the City and County Proposal for St. Joseph Community Center.

RE:

The immediate goal of the Valor Home Lorain County Committee is to seek a meeting with Governor Kasich and to ask for his assistance. Specifically, we will be asking for an opportunity to broker a compromise between the Ohio Department of Development, Lorain County, and the City of Lorain, regarding their loans. To accomplish this task, we will need strong written support from the Veterans and Residents of Lorain County. For clarification, we positioned Valor Home Lorain County at the St. Joseph Community Center because the Lorain County Commissioners and the City of Lorain wanted the Transitional Housing for Veterans in Need there. However, the long-term financial stability of the St. Joseph Community Center remains as a critical element in our decision-making. Please understand that if we purchase the 5th floor of the St. Joseph Community Center today, we would be obligated to operate Valor Home Lorain County at that location for a period of fifteen (15) years. If the financial stability of the St. Joseph Community Center is not insured and then closes, Valor Home Lorain County would be obligated to repay a $470,000 grant to the Veterans Administration. We strive to be good stewards of the funds entrusted to us by the Veterans Administration to provide Transitional Housing for Veterans in need. We are also grateful for the funds contributed by the Veterans Organizations and Residents of Lorain County.

We are confident a compromise can reached if all sides are willing to sit together at the table and find a way to keep our Veterans in Need as the primary focus. But, if an amicable compromise cannot be brokered between the Ohio Department of Development, Lorain County, and the City of Lorain, we will have no other choice but to seek an alternative location for Valor Home Lorain County. Veterans Organizations, Veterans, and Residents of Lorain County can assist us by signing Letters of Support that we will personally deliver to Governor Kasich. For a sample Letter of Support, please send an email to: secretary@hardchargers.com. Additionally, we are asking our Lorain County Veterans Organizations to send representatives from each post, in uniform, with us to Columbus. Whatever the outcome of this effort, the Valor Home Lorain County Committee remains determined to provide Transitional Housing for Veterans in Need in Lorain County. And we thank you for your continued support. Valor Home Lorain County Committee Samuel Felton Jr. President Dale Smith, Vice-President Leo Citro, Treasurer Linda Horvath, Secretary Matthew Slater, Parliamentarian Dan Gillotti, By-Laws Committee Don Attie, Finance Committee Mike Beatty, Audit Committee Dina Ferrer, Community/Publicity Committee Don Bates, Governmental Affairs Committee