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Fisher House Is More Than a Place to Stay
A free place to stay provides comfort for veterans getting treatment
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When Rebecca Truett learned that her husband, Terry, would need a stem cell transplant in Charleston, his cancer was only one of the problems the Ridgeway couple faced.
Terry, a retired Army aviation officer, had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2015. He was treated, and the lymphoma went into remission. But it returned in 2017, and doctors determined he needed the transplant early in the next year at the Medical University of South Carolina.
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Following the procedure, he would have virtually no immune system and would need to remain close to the hospital for about a month in case complications developed.
The Truetts lived roughly 2½ hours away. Rebecca, now 56, began looking for someplace they could stay near the hospital. But Charleston lodging was expensive—a major financial burden at a time when the family was already losing income and worrying about children, pets and responsibilities at home.
She searched for options. Again and again, she encountered roadblocks.
Then someone told her about the Charleston Fisher House.
Truett became emotional recalling that first phone call. The woman who answered told her they could take care of the family and asked when they needed to arrive.
“I had never heard such beautiful words in my life,” Truett says. “It was just such a weight lifted off of us.”
Suites in High Demand
Fisher Houses provide free temporary lodging near major military and Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers, allowing families to remain close to loved ones undergoing treatment. They include private suites along with communal kitchens, dining and living areas. As of January 2026, there were 100 Fisher Houses in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. Since the program began, it has served more than 570,000 families and provided 13.4 million days of lodging, according to the Fisher House Foundation.
Demand at the Charleston Fisher House has risen sharply in recent years. The 16-suite house operated at about 53 percent occupancy in 2022 and served just under 800 families that year, according to Michelle Horn, vice president of communications at the foundation. So far in 2026, occupancy is averaging more than 80 percent, and the house has already served 800 families—putting it on pace to set a record for the Charleston location.
Horn says Charleston now has one of the highest occupancy rates among all Fisher Houses. The foundation is also working to increase awareness of the Charleston house and the services available to military and veteran families.
Once a Fisher House is completed and donated to the VA, the VA assumes responsibility for operating and maintaining it. Community organizations and donors help provide extras, ranging from groceries and household necessities to transportation. In Charleston, Fisher House offers hotel rooms—through Fisher House Foundation’s Hotels for Heroes program and support from Friends of Fisher House Charleston—when all 16 suites are occupied.
South Carolina also has a Fisher House in Columbia.
AARP South Carolina helped raise money and awareness for the Columbia house before it opened, and it also contributed more than $50,000 over several years through direct donations and event sponsorships, says Joe Meyers, AARP South Carolina associate state director for engagement and veterans. Meyers, an Air Force veteran, also serves as chair of Friends of Fisher House Columbia.
Meyers says Fisher House brings together two important AARP priorities: veterans and family caregiving.
Focus on Recovery
Josh Strimple, chair of Friends of Fisher House Charleston, says the nonprofit spends roughly $200,000 annually on groceries, transportation, upkeep and overflow lodging. Before Fisher House opened, he says, some families trying to remain close to hospitalized veterans slept in cars or went into debt paying for accommodations.
The newer Columbia Fisher House faces a different challenge: making sure veterans and their families know that it exists, Meyers says.
For Truett, Fisher House provided far more than free lodging. Because Terry was extremely vulnerable to infection, having a kitchen and living space they could carefully clean gave the couple peace of mind. Volunteers brought meals, staff checked on caregivers and families staying at the house supported one another.
She remembers military families trading stories, helping each other through difficult days and celebrating when someone was finally able to go home. One fellow guest undergoing treatment even cooked a bacon and eggs breakfast for everyone on Saturday mornings.
“The people that are there are like my family,” Truett says.
Most importantly, she says, Fisher House allowed her to concentrate on Terry, now 60 and cancer-free, rather than on all the logistical problems surrounding his illness.
“They gave us the freedom to focus on recovery,” she says.
To learn more about the impact of Fisher Houses on veteran and military families across South Carolina and to discover ways to get involved, go to friendsof fisherhousecharleston.org.
More on Veterans and Caregiving
- AARP Resources for Veterans Beyond the VA
- AARP: Get Paid to Care for Your Veteran
- AARP Resources for Veteran Caregivers
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