HOMES FOR VETERANS – Dozens of volunteers joined High Desert Medical Group as a team sponsor at the Homes4Families “Veterans Enriched Neighborhood” build site in Palmdale on Saturday. The teams of volunteers included the Boeing Co., City of Lancaster, Lancaster High School and Vets4veterans.

At Saturday’s event, CEO Donna Deutchman accepted a $50,000 check from previous Homes4Families honoree, employees of The Boeing Co., and announced that High Desert Medical Group will be the 2021 Honoree at the non-profit group’s Annual Builders Ball to be held later this year.

Among the officials welcoming HDMG’s team and all the other volunteers were Palmdale Mayor Steve Hofbauer, and Dr. Vito Imbasciani, the head of the California Department of Veterans (CalVet). Deutchman noted that the volunteers were contributing $32,000 worth of worker value in fully painting the interiors of 10 homes set for occupancy by veterans entering the California housing market for the first time.

High Desert Medical Group volunteers who participated in Saturday’s work day included Michael Almazar, an Army veteran of Iraq. Almazar is also HDMG’s Vice President for Utilization. Also joining in was Thomas Viall, RN, HDMG’s Supervisor of Nursing Services, along with Referrals Supervisor Roxanne Espino, and Caring For Life Coordinator Donna Carrion. Volunteer Project lead was Dennis Anderson, an Army veteran of the Cold War who deployed to Iraq as an embedded journalist. Anderson, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, is HDMG’s community liaison for veterans and community outreach. Bolstering the HDMG team were team partners Paul Carrion and Julia Akoury-Anderson.

Saturday’s Rainbow Build project honored contributions to the military made by its LGBT veterans.

Twelve homes of an eventual 52 have been completed for veterans in the central Palmdale development built as a Veterans Enriched Neighborhood. High Desert Medical Group has a continuing sponsorship commitment to this initiative to make affordable housing available to those who served in our nation’s armed forces. HDMG has also provided mental health and wellness workshops at Homes4Families, and has participated in three earlier volunteer job site events.