DENTON, Texas — Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) halls have a reputation for being a welcoming place for older veterans. But a VFW post in Denton is adding a video game center in hopes of attracting a younger crowd.
Inside of VFW Post 2205, there's much of what you might expect: Pool, darts, drinks and yes ... some older folks, too. But take it from Vietnam veteran Jim Brown, there is more to it than that.
"This is not a place for the old people. This is a place for the up and coming veterans," Brown told WFAA.
Brown wants to get younger veterans through those doors – Afghanistan and Iraq veterans. He wants to expose them to the recreation, and more importantly, the resources VFW halls have to offer.
" In my opinion, they feel like we're just a bunch of old veterans that sit around," Brown said.
That's where a room called the entertainment center comes into play. Post Commander Tim Qualls told WFAA the room is being gutted, and 16 stations for gaming units are being installed. The entertainment center will soon be the "gaming room."
"When I've been out talking about this, people are like 'oh, you're going to put Pac-Man … no no, I'm talking about a legit gaming center with PS5, Xboxes, that kind of stuff," Qualls said.
It's a new idea to get younger guys in the door, and more importantly, keep them alive.
"You could've knocked me over with a feather when I see, hey, one of the top three preventers for suicide for a young veteran is gaming," Qualls said.
Brown, Qualls and the rest of the "old school" veterans are still fundraising hard to make it happen.
"If that works, and it prevents one suicide it's more than worth the effort," Qualls said.
It's the whole point.
"There are those of us that are going out of our way to help them, and they either don't feel they deserve it or they're just not aware," Brown said.
With just a few PS5s, these guys plan to change that.
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