Nowra's Veteran Wellbeing Centre finally has its permanent home.
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Hundreds dropped in to the new centre on Wallace St on Monday (December 5), for the official opening.
Local veterans - including the notable Keith Payne VC - were joined by serving personnel, MPs and councillors, defence families, and community members to celebrate the custom-built, state of the art hub.
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Veteran Wellbeing Centre manager Jason Grimes said from their brand new home base, the team will be able to do even more for local veterans and their families.
There are an estimated 2000-plus veterans in the Nowra district, and he would love to see each of them come through the door.
"RSL Life Care provides some key services like DVA [Department of Veterans Affairs] claims, wellbeing support, homelessness support... but the purpose of the centre is for other services and ESOs to collaborate," Mr Grimes said.
"It's basically a one stop shop for anybody who needs services of any kind, and my challenge is to find a service that can accommodate them.
"I want to see as many veterans as possible. Our youngest client right now is 17 and our oldest is 103, so we have services available for any range of veterans who come in - or for their family.
"It's not just about the veterans, it's also about supporting the family."
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The Nowra Veteran Wellbeing Centre is the second to open in New South Wales; a third is set to open soon, and the federal government has plans to open ten more across Australia.
More centres will be rolled out to towns with large veteran populations.
RSL Life Care CEO Janet Muir said the Nowra centre, and those which will follow, build on the organisation's century of helping veterans.
"This is reaffirming everything that we've done, the support we've given for over a century through RSL Life Care," she said.
"It's going to be an extension, and focus in on delivering the right holistic services to veterans and their families.
"Already we provide residential aged care, retirement living, and home care. But what this allows us to do is open up centres focused specifically on veterans and their families."
Nowra's new centre will not only house RSL Life Care, but services including Invictus Australia, Open Arms, and Veterans and Families Counselling will call the hub home.
It will look after veterans from the Shoalhaven, Illawarra, Southern Highlands, and Southern Tablelands.
Centre manager Jason Grimes is also a veteran, having served in the United States Marine Corps.
He has made it his own mission to support fellow veterans.
In celebrating the new centre, Mr Grimes said that the most important thing for his team is staying true to their goal.
"This is just a building. However, it's the spirit in which it's been built, what it stands for, that is most important.
"In the Marine Corps we have a phrase we constantly use to remind us of our calling: Semper Fidelis. Simply put, it means 'always faithful'.
"I challenge all here today to remain always faithful to this noble cause.
"Together we will achieve the betterment of our brothers and sisters who have worn uniforms, we will better the lives of their family members, and we will make this a better community."
The new Nowra Veteran Wellbeing Centre is located at 124 Wallace St, Nowra.
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