FRANKFORT, Ky – Thomson-Hood Veterans Center (THVC) will celebrate its 25th anniversary on Thursday, August 11 with a ceremony and reception for residents, family, friends and admirers from across the state. Governor Matthew G. Bevin will be the guest speaker.
“THVC has for a quarter of a century set the standard for veterans’ care in Kentucky and throughout the nation,” said Norman Arflack, commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs, which operates the state’s veterans nursing homes. “The heartfelt dedication of its staff to caring for veterans continues to raise the bar for all of our facilities.”
THVC opened in Wilmore in 1991 as the first State Veterans Nursing Home in Kentucky. Its name then was simply Kentucky Veterans Center (KVC.) With 285 beds, it was built to handle all the state’s veterans’ needs at the time. It was renamed in 1998 to honor two people who were instrumental in establishing the facility — George B. Thomson, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who served in World War II, and the Korean and Vietnam Wars, and Beatrice Elizabeth Greenwell Hood, the first administrator of the Kentucky Veterans Center and the person who oversaw construction.
More than 3,000 Kentucky veterans have received skilled nursing care at THVC in 25 years. The facility has been upgraded numerous times, including moving the specialty care unit from the second to the ground floor to permit those residents easy access to a secure garden area.
The anniversary ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, August 11 and will be followed by a reception. Both are open to the public.