ABOUT US

The Friends of Fisher House is a local non-profit 501 (c) (3) established in 1998 to support the various needs of the West Palm Beach VA Fisher House. Friends of Fisher House is governed by an all-volunteer Board, most of whom are Veterans, and operates without paid staff.   

We provide support to the West Palm Beach Fisher House to ensure Military, Veterans, and their families experience the comforts of home while receiving vital medical care at the VA or a nearby facility.

To be eligible to stay at the Fisher House, a family need only have a fifty-mile commute, a requirement easily satisfied by most families since the VA Medical Center serves a seven-county area. Families stay free of charge indefinitely.

West Palm Beach Fisher House is one of over ninety Fisher Houses in the United States and overseas (Germany and the U.K.), all located at VA Medical Centers or military installations. They are all premised on the belief that “a family’s love is good medicine”. They are also premised on the notion that families confronting health challenges can help each other get through this stressful time in their lives – especially families who share a similar background of service and commitment to our country.

The first Fisher House was established in 1990 through the generosity of Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher who wanted families to feel they were staying with them at their own home. Their good work is still carried on by the Fisher family through the Fisher House Foundation; the VA and Military who manage the Houses; independent, local community support groups such as ours and ultimately the benevolence of the general public.

Friends of Fisher House, working hand in glove with WPB VA’s outstanding House Manager, provides a wide range of guest-related operational support. This includes funding food staples, catered meals, gas cards, gift cards and various other amenities. It also includes helping fund the cost of hotel stays when the eight-bedroom WPB Fisher House is at full capacity. It further includes capital projects such as a recent total kitchen renovation and the addition of a gazebo to provide another place for families to gather and relax after a long day at the hospital. The caring concern of people like you makes all these things possible.

We are dedicated to the enrichment of the quality of life of the guests at the West Palm Beach Fisher House, by providing improvements, amenities, alternate lodging and other services as needed.

The West Palm Beach Fisher House Turtle

Indian River Mental Health Association donated “Freedom,” a patriotic turtle sculpture, to the West Palm Beach Fisher House. The turtle’s shell represents protection and shelter from harm, just as the Fisher House provides shelter and comfort to families enduring illness and other hardships. “Freedom” was painted by local artist Barbara Sharp.

WHAT IS A FISHER HOUSE?