ABOVE: A group of supporters of the Bravo Zulu house at its groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday in northern Martin County. Left side, from left: Brittany Hartman, Betsy Tino, Tim Murray, Cory Germain, Steve Fosness, Pam Krill, Bjorn Olson, Jack Zimmerman, Bill Slattery. Right side, from left: Cathy Smith, Brad Finstad, Nancy Stauffer, Doug Landsteiner, Holly Callen, Major John Donovan, Kandi Menne, Jeff Sauer and Michael Andrews.

WINNEBAGO– Groundbreaking for the first all-military sober house in Martin County took place on Wednesday morning. About 100 supporters from around the county and beyond were present to celebrate this big step forward in opening the Bravo Zulu House.

The house is located in northern Martin County with a Winnebago address. Once completed it will have rooms for 13 male veterans. Because it is located on a farm, the property will also feature a kennel to keep a therapy dog from Paws for Cause for each of the occupants and it will also have space for hydroponic farming.

In order to fund the additions and open the house, $1.2 million is needed and through fundraising efforts over the last nine months, about half of the money has already been raised. On Wednesday many different supporters were present to share how and why they have been supporting the opening of the Bravo Zulu House.

Tim Murray, Servant Leader of the Bravo Zulu House, is also the Executive Director of Trinity Sober Homes. He saw a need for an all-military sober house and began looking at properties and previously said that he indicated southern Minnesota as the ideal location because of the area’s strong support of veterans.

“At Bravo Zulu House, all of us have one purpose to serve our veterans struggling with a dual diagnosis of MI (mental illness) and DC (chemical dependency). Right now, there are roughly 20,000 male veterans and another 10,000 female veterans who will be coming out of treatment just this month,” Murray said.

He said that trend will continue for at least the next decade and noted that while there are a multitude of sober houses throughout the country, there are no all-military sober homes that address the underlying issues of PTSD.

Murray said that over 50 Fairmont-related businesses and organizations have stepped up one way or another to support the Bravo Zulu House. Many of the businesses, such as Boekett Building Supply, Dan’s Appliances, Day Plumbing, etc, have made in-kind donations via services.

“We’re running about 50-50 right now with in-kind donations but we have other organizations like the American Legion, Valero and Devenish Nutrition who have stepped up to give $500 or $5,000,” Murray said.

In late March, the Bravo Zulu House held a “friendraiser” event, via a Jason Gray concert in Fairmont. Murray said the pricing was designed to breakeven with the artist but that they ended up raising $2,000.

“We ended up getting 200 new emails from people who attended and said they were interested in learning more information about the Bravo Zulu House,” Murray said.

Other key speakers at Wednesday’s groundbreaking included, Pam Krill, Department Membership Director for the American Legion; Steve Fosness, American Legion Lee C Prentice Post 36 Commander; Jack Zimmerman, a local veteran; Kathy Smith, Martin County Commissioner; Bjorn Olson, Minnesota State Representative and Brad Finstad, United States Congressman.

Krill acknowledged that not just veterans suffer with issues from alcoholism and PTSD, but noted that having a place for people to come together in the brotherhood and share their stories together is needed.

“You’re going to be the first place in the nation to have this house for veterans,” Krill said of the Bravo Zulu house.

Zimmerman shared a powerful message and detailed his experience in joining the military and being deployed to Afghanistan and stepping on an IED which exploded and resulted in him being seriously injured and losing some limbs.

“As I laid there on the ground, bleeding out, my guys came rushing to my side to save my life. That’s what you are all doing right now for the guys who are struggling. You’re all rushing to their side to give them an opportunity,” Zimmerman said to the gathered crowd.

Olson, who is a member of the Veterans Committee, said that one of the current goals of that group is targeting veteran homelessness. He said that moving forward the group wants to focus on solider suicide and he hopes to work with the Bravo Zulu House in the future.

“The veterans committee and the veterans bill has always been something that receives unanimous support from both sides of the aisle,” Olson said.

Finstad thanked everyone there for supporting the project and its mission in their various ways. He shared how he explains southern Minnesota to those who ask him about the district he serves.

“We have some counties with more pigs than people and Rochester, the home of the Mayo Clinic and the most highly educated county in the country, we have strong agriculture roots and we have a strong, strong commitment to our country and a willingness to serve,” Finstad said.

He shared that he sits on the Armed Services Committee in the United States House of Representative and as he works with the committee and the various challenges in the country, he noted that there is stress throughout the globe.

“As we talk about those things, we talk about how we reach out to the young people who are interested in serving and one of the things that come up is that when they retire, we need to show them that we value their service and care about them. This is an example of you all doing that in your own backyard,” Finstad said.

In closing, Murray also thanked the crowd for its support and urged others who want to support to think about how they could be on of three “Ds:” a do-er, a donor or a door-opener.

“It’s okay if sending in money is not your thing. You can be a door-opener. We also need a lot of supervisors and lastly as a donor, you can set up a monthly amount or give a one-time gift. All of the help we have received has allowed us to be here,” Murray said.

The Bravo Zulu House will continue to build credibility and spread its mission in the hopes of gaining more support in one of the three Ds. The project is actually ahead of schedule and there is an expected opening completion date of late fall.

“Our target is that our men will have their first Thanksgiving meal together,” Murray said.