Members and volunteers from the Elks Lodge, the Rotary Club, Homes 4 Families and the Santa Clarita City Council all came together Saturday with one common goal: to help welcome veterans and their families into the community.

Personally welcoming the families was longtime Santa Clarita City Councilman and veteran Bob Kellar.

The luncheon was a combined effort, bringing in volunteers from multiple groups to the Santa Clarita Elks Lodge to put on a luncheon for the families of veterans who have recently moved into the 78 home CalVet REN development off of Center Pointe Parkway.

Personally welcoming the families was longtime Santa Clarita City Councilman and veteran Bob Kellar.

“I had the privilege of being at the very first meeting at the back room of Salt Creek Grille,” said Kellar. “We sat there and we talked about what we can do to have essential services and homes for our veterans. And look at what it has ultimately been, look at what a success it has been.”

A majority of the families who qualified for the Center Pointe Parkway homes are brand new residents to the Santa Clarita Valley, according to officials, making Saturday’s luncheon an important tool in connecting these new neighbors to the multitude of veterans support groups in our valley.

“We have a lot of older veterans that have been part of this community for many years so we are able to guide them and refer them to the business services they need,” said Jim Lentini, the Elks Lodge Veterans Chairman.

Lentini volunteers as one of the six veteran mentors for the local nonprofit Homes 4 Families, helping guide new families through the process of adjusting to a new location while remaining in contact with the various support groups and veteran communities in the Santa Clarita Valley.

“Most of us move into a community and someone brings over a plate of cookies and that might be it for the first year. All of these folks have met each other, they have gone through classes and groups together,” said John Wartinger, a veterans services specialist at Homes 4 Families. “So you build the neighborhood before you finish the houses.”

As a housewarming gift, the servicemen and their families were also given bags to take what they needed from a rummage sale outside the event.

The Elks Lodge partnered with the Santa Clarita Rotary Club to serve barbecue and ice cream sandwiches to the more than 30 families in attendance.

As a housewarming gift, the servicemen and their families were also given bags to take what they needed from a rummage sale outside the event.

The CalVet REN development opened in 2016, and is comprised of 78 homes exclusively for veterans and their families.

Elks Lodge is located at 17766 Sierra Hwy, Canyon Country, CA 91351.

For more information on Homes 4 Families click here and for the CalVet REN, here.

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