Rural Texans are generous and giving. This is especially true of residents in the Texas Panhandle.
And Texas Farm Bureau and county Farm Bureaus in the area reflect that generous nature.
One great example is the Medical Center League House in Amarillo. It is a non-profit hospitality house that serves as a “home away from home” for patients and their families undergoing health care treatment. It seeks to provide comfortable and affordable lodging in a caring environment of support and assistance.
It features 31 hotel-like private rooms, with two queen beds in each room, a kitchen, dining room, living room, laundry room and prayer garden.
The League House is a charitable community project that opened in November 2010.
The facility serves guests from the 26 counties of the Texas Panhandle, the four bordering states (Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico and Colorado), as well as residents from other parts of the country. In the past 10 years, the League House has served over 150,000 guests, including guests from all 50 states and from seven countries.
“It is amazing to hear stories from our guests who end up in Amarillo from out of state. We serve anyone who travels to Amarillo for medical care, treatments or hospital stays. We also encourage those to stay with us if they are coming for a funeral, visit to a retirement home, nursing home, memory care or hospice stay for a non-medical rate of $75 (no tax). We serve a lot of veterans, as we have the largest VA hospital in the area. Once they are checked in, they may stay as long as they need the room. There is no time limit on the days they can stay,” said Amber Glawe, president and executive director of the Medical Center League House.
COVID-19 hurt the League House. For many months, overnight guests vanished, because the Medical Center hospitals were not doing procedures, and many Amarillo doctors closed their offices.
Before the COVID crisis, the facility hosted an average of 25-28 families per night. During the crisis, there were a few nights with no guests staying overnight or maybe only 2-4 rooms occupied per night.
TFB District 1 State Director Pat McDowell of Shamrock has been a long-time supporter of the League House through his local civic club, The Shamrock Boosters. TFB’s District 1 includes the top 22 counties of the Texas Panhandle.
McDowell said numerous small towns in the Panhandle still have a small hospital that is vital to the health of their communities, but major procedures, cancer treatments and births are still mostly handled in Amarillo. That results in numerous car trips every day from these small towns to go see the Amarillo doctor. The League House gives rural folks a place to stay.
The financial situation of the League House was apparent among its supporters. McDowell used his district funds to make a $2,000 donation to the League House late last year to help keep the lights on for the next family who needed to stay there. McDowell noted he was just one of many individuals and groups that joined forces late in the year to donate funds to keep the doors open.
McDowell said county Farm Bureaus in the Panhandle are working together this year as part of an awareness campaign with the League House. TFB field representatives are making a brief presentation to each of the county Farm Bureaus in the Panhandle about the League House, highlighting how the facility can help rural members of the county Farm Bureaus.
The District 1 county Farm Bureaus worked together to provide a $2,000 scholarship in 2021 for any individual or family who needs to stay at the League House but cannot afford the full per night room fee of $50.
“If the folks are associated with Panhandle agriculture in any way, they are able to get financial assistance from this fund. They do not have to be Farm Bureau members. They just have to be involved in some phase of the vital ag Industry that is so important to the Texas Panhandle,” Glawe said. “We have many scholarships from area towns that help families in need from their communities. We have an Adopt the House program that helps anyone, as well as a Be A Blessing program that helps us support families and buy supplies for the house. We operate mostly on donations and the room rental income. Our biggest fundraiser is in the fall called Dinner in the Garden, which is well attended and helps sustain us for the upcoming year.”
For more information, contact the Medical Center League House at 806.358.3759 or visit https://www.leaguehouse.org/.