PORT JERVIS – Rumshock Veterans Village, which will include 10 tiny homes, a veteran community center, and a hydroponic garden and work area for veterans, celebrated its ribbon cutting on Flag Day.
Rumshock Foundation President Tyler Whetsel has taken over the leadership positions since his father, founder Bill Whetsel passed away sadly at age 59 on February 21.
Four of the homes have been set in place with foundations poured for others. They are expected to be occupied in November.
Whetsel said that as a young boy helping his father, an Air Force veteran, rebuild an old family-owned hunting cabin, and in future such experiences, he came to realize that his father had prepared him for his current mission. He recalled his father also telling him he wished for simpler times, times like rebuilding that cabin together; times that his father had grown up in – when communities meant a lot and people gave each other a whole lot of chances and help.
“What you see today is physical proof of what happens when passion meets purpose, and when a community decides to say yes,” Tyler said. “My father felt a calling. In 2019, he had learned of homeless veterans in Orange County and refused to believe that these people did not deserve a chance. He had a vision of a village, a community, where a veteran could wake up and say, “This is mine. This is home. This is my second chance.”
Bill Whetsel worked hard to get this project underway and poured everything he had into it, continuing outreach and planning from his hospital room daily.
“I watched the man who had given me the passion of helping people – the man who had taught me how to build things – fight the hardest battle of his life and push through moments when the road seemed impossible. And I knew what I had to do. I stepped in,” Tyler said. “From that point on, we shared a mission, and we had people that needed help. A village that needed to be built.”
A million-dollar federal grant delivered by Congressman Pat Ryan, along with a $400,000 grant secured by former State Senator Jen Metzger – now Ulster County executive – and delivered by former State Senator Mike Martucci and additional donations and support from others, have helped to fund the project to date. Many of these supporters, and others – including city officials, veteran and community groups.
Ryan, himself a combat veteran, noted that with America’s 250th Anniversary less than a month away, he wished the spirit of this project could be bottled and carried for the next 250 years.
“Very few are doing anything like this, Bill’s vision – with his family’s, Rumshock’s, and this community’s tiny home support. This needs to spread across the country, for America’s next 250-years,” Ryan said. “That is the mission.”
Port Jervis Mayor Dominic Cicalese, whose own late father was also a combat veteran, said, “There is no higher calling than taking over your father’s vision,” Cicalese said. “And you absolutely picked the best location in Orange County to set up shop. We are proud to have you and your foundation here in Port Jervis.”
According to U.S. Housing and Urban Development January 2025 Point in Time homeless count across America, 32,495 veterans were included in the nation recent homeless count, with nearly half categorized as “living in places not meant for human habitation, such as cars, parks, sidewalks, abandoned buildings and literally on the street.”
Built along a mountain ridge, with a bubbling brook running along it, Rumshock Village residents are expected to begin moving into the new tiny homes this fall. Each home will be approximately 420 square feet, with a bathroom and shower, living room, bedroom, condensed kitchen space, Heat & AC, and outdoor patio. Veteran on-site services will include job training, counseling, and other support services.
“It is on a main artery into the city but looking down into the creek area and mountain behind it, it’s paradise. That was my dad’s dream – to create a paradise for these veterans – because they deserve it,” Tyler said. “They deserve a second chance, and not to be on the street. Not charity. Not pity. A chance to rebuild — to find stability, find community, and find themselves again.”
Comments