West Virginia Veteran’s Home

West Virginia – Wednesday, April 17

It rained most of the night, but looked like things were clearing up as I headed out. I drove to the outskirts of town where I had noticed a rail trail yesterday as I came into Elkins. So I walked about 4 1/2 miles to get the day started. There’s an awful lot of trees and branches down, and I’ve noticed this all over West Virginia. Someone told me it’s because of the hard winter, and all the freezing and thawing simply became too much for some of the trees. Some heavy equipment came through working on clearing away some of the debris. Then I had to find a State Farm insurance office to take care of my van insurance payment. I pay as usual to my State Farm agent back home, but then they have to fax the proof of insurance paper to a State Farm agent. But it works – we did this 6 months ago, and again today, and I’ll be home before it’s due again. It’s just one of the details to take care of while I’m out on the road! Before I left town, I stopped by the KFC place where I’d gotten my dinner last night. Most of the chicken was so dried out (they had been getting ready to close apparently) that I couldn’t eat some of it, and although I’m not a big complainer about food, that was worth complaining about! They were very nice, and not only refunded what I paid last night, but gave me the exact same meal again on the house. So now I’ve had enough chicken for a while!

From there, I started heading west. We stopped in the little town of Buckhannon and walked another mile, and then I called the West Virginia Veteran’s Home in Barboursville and talked with Patti, their recreation/activities director. She said they would love to get a donation – she would like to put it toward some of the outings she arranges for the veterans. She would be there until 4:00, but said she would wait if it took me a little longer to get there, considering I still had a ways to drive. I made good time til I got to Charleston, and then there was an accident of some sort that slowed things down for a good 45 minutes. But Patti waited, and I met up with her once I finally got there. She showed me the room with all their supplies for a variety of projects, and told me what sorts of activities are offered. She also like to take groups of them on outings, and I thought she meant to the movies or bowling or something, but when she can, she likes to take them fishing and camping. Patti’s heart is with these veterans and she really seems to consider then “her” people – she came by this job unexpectedly and has now been there for a very long time. She says even after she retires, she’ll come back as a volunteer!

Tula and I walked nearly 3 more miles all around Barbourville, and finished up for the day.