A New Veterans Home Opened in South Fort Worth to Honor the Tuskegee Airmen

A ribbon cutting marked the grand opening of the Tuskegee Airmen Texas State Veterans Home on Saturday morning, as veterans and city, county and state officials came to lend their support.

The crowd of about 100 people gathered at 2200 Joe B. Rushing Road to listen to Texas Rep. Nicole Collier, who spoke with a replica P-51 Mustang behind her. The fighter bomber was used by the Black military pilots and airmen called the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II.

“The Tuskegee Airmen fought for freedom, not only for themselves, but for all Americans, “ Collier said. “As we open the doors for this new home, let us remember that the work of creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive world is ongoing.”

The 100,000-square-foot home will provide long-term nursing care for 120 veterans. It will include 72 rooms, 24 of which are private, and up to 30 residents who may require memory care. Veterans with 70 percent or more service-connected disability rating are eligible to live in the home at no cost. The location is adjacent to the Fort Worth VA clinic at 2201 SE Loop 820.

The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of more than 900 African-American military pilots and airmen who flew combat aircraft in World War II. They flew more than 1,500 missions in North Africa and Italy.

The group was subjected to discrimination during their time in the armed forces, but have since been honored for their legacy and wartime achievements. The airmen were collectively awarded a Congressional Gold Medal in 2007, were inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame in 2008 and were commemorated in the George Lucas film “Red Tails” in 2012.

Fort Worth was home to at least five Tuskegee Airmen, with the city’s last surviving member, Robert T. McDaniel, dying in 2019 at 96.

The creation and construction of the veterans home happened when then-Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, who was also president of the Texas Veterans Land Board, attended a breakfast at the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce in October 2018. He came by the Chamber’s office and mentioned how the Veterans Land Board wanted to build a new veterans home in North Texas. The Chamber‘s president and CEO at the time, Devoyd Jennings, along with others, worked to develop a proposal for a Fort Worth location.

In 2019, Bush and his staff viewed several sites and decided on the property, which was owned by the county. In spring 2019, then- Tarrant County Commissioner Roy Brooks persuaded the county to donate the land; the approval was granted that summer.

The name of the facility was chosen in August 2021 to honor the Tuskegee Airmen and the ground breaking was held that same month.

The replica of the P-51 Mustang was unveiled for the facility last September.

Texas Veterans Land Board Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham said the opening of the facility was a collaborative effort, from Tarrant County donating land to local organizations offering their services.

“That’s what people want to see,” Buckingham said. “They want local governments, their state government, and federal government working together for the benefit of the people. ”

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