Leading the way to serve their community once again, the team from West Carolina Rural Telephone Cooperative (Abbeville, S.C.) and their members of the Greenwood County, S.C., community celebrated the opening of a new “Virtual Living Room®” telehealth center in the Greenwood County Veterans Center, with assistance from a Foundation for Rural Service grant earlier this week. Jeff Wilson, CEO of WC Fiber noted that “It’s nice to be able to give something back to them.” Given that a vast number of veterans hail from rural America, this initiative is a perfect fit for FRS, NTCA members and state VA offices.
The center gives veterans a private place to meet with health care professionals via videoconference. It is free to use for any veteran in the area and is one of several that FRS has funded nationwide with support from CoBank. Vermont, Tennessee and Kentucky have had projects up and running as well.
West Carolina provides connectivity to the Virtual Living Room®. Chief Executive Officer Jeff Wilson told local media it’s important for veterans to have easy access to health care and the center also cuts down on travel, saving veterans time and money. Way to go, West Carolina and FRS….love this initiative and support for your local veterans.
As we enter into the Memorial Day weekend, it’s always important to remember why we have the holiday and why we celebrate and to take time to honor those who have served. NTCA members and FRS honor as well as they continue to roll out more Virtual Living Rooms across the country.
Learn more: Virtual Living Room® is an FRS grant program that blends rural technology, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) resources and local support to encourage veteran use of advanced medical technologies. If you’re interested in making a difference in your community, get started with FRS today.