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Stories

Read about what's happening in our VA Salem health care community.

When he joined the Marine Corps in 1966, Steve Bozeman didn’t think he’d be flying combat missions – he enlisted to be a helicopter mechanic, but also became a combat door gunner earning 18 Air Medals and two Purple Hearts.

Marine Veteran Steve Bozeman in Vietnam

The ribbon was cut Friday, February 23, 2024 opening a new short-stay in-patient rehabilitation unit in Bldg. 7 at the Salem VA Medical Center.

Officials cut the ribbon opening the short-stay rehabilitation clinic

Metrics and measurements often show companies how effective things are, but in the Fall of 2021 when Dr. Tanvi Patil looked at the numbers, she saw an opportunity to make things better for Veterans who receive care through the Salem VA Health Care System.

Dr. Tanvi Patil

After three years of construction, the renovation of the Salem VA Medical Center’s 4J Med/Surg floor now boasts 20 private rooms with ensuite bathrooms.

The front desk of Ward 4J at Salem VAMC

Gifts were opened early in Salem’s Community Living Center when, on November 1, the CLC cut the ribbon on a Restorative Gym for residents.

Dr. Vivian Osuorah cuts the ribbon to the CLC Restorative Gym

John Burch Jr., a native of Lynchburg, Virginia, and World War II Veteran, will be the first to tell you he’s no hero. He repeats the phrase often because for him the sobriquet belongs to those who didn’t return from war, and the doctors – they were heroes.

World War II Veteran and Lynchburg, Virginia native John Burch

The American flag outside a modest ranch house in Staunton, Virginia doesn’t give away much about the owner. It could be the home of a schoolteacher, community organizer, or civil servant. But in this case, the owner is Woody Sowers, a World War II Veteran who celebrates his 100th birthday Dec. 29.

World War II Veteran, Woody Sowers, turns 100 years old Dec. 29, 2022

For Seyward McKinney, joining the Army was a calling - something she realized she needed to do from the moment she took a school trip to New York City.

Army Veteran Seyward McKinney with a horse from the Healing Strides stables in Virginia.

For Seyward McKinney, joining the Army was a calling - something she realized she needed to do from the moment she took a school trip to New York City.

Army Veteran Seyward McKinney with a horse from the Healing Strides stables in Virginia.

In July the service received the first of three Tennant T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machines.

Jorge Markin, Third Shift Team Lead, sets the map option for a T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machine in Bldg. 74