SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — Warrior Foundation Freedom Station announced Friday the acquisition of Freedom Station III, the foundation’s third transitional housing property in San Diego to support ill and injured Warriors transitioning from active duty to civilian life.
“We are excited and honored to announce the acquisition of Freedom Station III. Our Freedom Stations are designed to fill the gap for our medically retiring military heroes who need the time and place to transition from active duty to civilian life,” said CEO and Founder Sandy Lehmkuhler. “That is the reason we named our properties Freedom ‘Station.’ A station is a transition point where a train pulls in, gathers passengers, and then builds momentum or changes course on the way to their destination. That is exactly what Freedom Station III does for our Warriors.”
The Freedom Stations are specifically designed to craft a sense of community and promote recovery, while at the same time, cultivate independence and a passion for the future. The community features individual cottages or apartments (400-600 sq. ft.) with select units customized with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) friendly appliances, showers and entrance ways for disabled Warriors.
In addition, each complex features a central courtyard with a BBQ and gathering area to encourage a sense of community and camaraderie that is essential to the Warrior’s recovery.
“We are grateful to be at the forefront of transitional housing in San Diego,” said Andrew Gasper, President of the Warrior Foundation Freedom Station. “Sandy Lehmkuhler and the board of directors of the foundation are visionaries in creating extraordinary housing for our Post-911 ill and injured Warriors. We are blessed and fortunate to be able to build Freedom Station III to support even more Warriors.”
The Freedom Station III is the third transitional housing complex constructed within a few miles of Balboa Naval Medical Center. The Freedom Stations are designed to provide a home in a supportive environment, while geographically selected to be close to the hospital, where a high percentage of the Warriors receive medical treatment, physical therapy and surgeries.
In 2011, Warrior Foundation Freedom Station pioneered a new approach and opened Freedom Station I – a unique transitional housing residence that provides injured Warriors with the acclimation time, guidance and resources to successfully make the transition from military service to civilian life.
During the past 11 years, the two Freedom Station properties have housed more than 100 Warriors. Intended as a “Hand-up, Not a Hand-out,” tenants only pay approximately a third of the cost of the median San Diego rental expense and average a 17-month residency before graduating into the civilian world.
The new property features 12 cottages and apartments in a courtyard setting resembling the other two Freedom Stations. The new facility increases the total housing to 29 cottages and apartments (Freedom Station I – 10 units / Freedom Station II – 7 units).
The new Freedom Station III property was purchased under the assistance and guidance of PNC Bank – a Warrior Foundation Freedom Station sponsor and supporter of the foundation’s annual CBS 8 and iHeart Radio Give-a-thon.
More than $2M in funds/donations will be required for improvements, ADA friendly buildouts and new construction to complete the Freedom Station III project. A projected Grand Opening will take place in 2023.
The foundation is committed to providing Warriors with quality-of-life items, support services and transitional housing designed to assist them and their families during recovery.
If you would like to donate to Freedom Station III, click here, or give them a call at (619) 578-2615.
Warrior Foundation Freedom Station invites you for an Open House Friday, August 12 at their Warrior Foundation Freedom Station II, located at 2222 30th Street from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. You'll be able to tour the property and take a sneak peek at the cottages. Freedom Station II opened in June of 2020 and has continued to help prepare military heroes for bright futures and purposeful lives.
WATCH RELATED: Warrior Foundation Freedom Station Give-a-thon: November 19, 2021