By Monica Wepking, Editor U.S. Senator Tim Johnson was one of many dignitaries present at the ground-breaking for the Wagner Veteran's Clinic, which was held on Friday, August 14, 2009 near Indian Health Services. "This is a proud day for Wagner. This is the first time that Veteran Affairs (VA) and Indian Health Services (IHS) have partnered in such a facility. This facility will be an example for the rest of the country. This is proof that Native Americans and the public can get along and it happened in Wagner, South Dakota," said Johnson. Paul Bockelman, Director of the Sioux Falls VA Medical Center said, "On behalf of the 825 employees who work in the Sioux Valley area, we are very happy to see this coming to fruition. We look forward to working with the community as we continue to get this clinic established, and very quickly in serving the veterans of this area." Charlene Red Thunder, Aberdeen Area IHS Director said, "This new clinic will serve 10 rural communities. The support of the Yankton Sioux Tribe in this facility was instrumental in establishing the clinic along with the Charles Mix County Commissioners and the City of Wagner." Coming all the way from Washington, D.C for the ground-breaking was Robert Petzel, Acting Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Health of the Veterans Health Administration. "I've been involved with this since the mid 1990's, but my only real contribution was that I insisted there would be some type of cooperation. There are 800 of these rural Veteran's Clinics and this one is unique with the cooperation of the Yankton Sioux Tribe, Veterans Affairs, and Indian Health Services. There are very few examples of this type of cooperation. Your South Dakota Congressional Delegation has been actively involved in bringing this clinic to Wagner. This truly is a cooperative effort. All of you Veterans out here, this is your clinic. You've earned it!" Yankton Sioux Tribal Chairman, Robert Cournoyer, was recognized and participated in the ground-breaking ceremony. YST Vice Chairman, John Stone, spoke on behalf of Chairman Cournoyer and the YST Business and Claims Committee and presented the Congressional Delegation with a gift of a blanket and an honor song. "We (YST) have the contract to put the footings in and do the dirt work for the new VA clinic. We'll be starting that work real soon," said Stone. Wooden stakes have been placed outside of IHS where the 3,000 sq. ft. VA Clinic will be placed on the corner of Hwy. 50 and Washington Ave. NW in Wagner. The clinic will provide primary and mental health services 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday - Friday except on Federal holidays. In addition, Home Based Primary Care will be available to eligible veterans within 60 minutes driving distance of Wagner. No emergency services will be available. VA will purchase maintenance and other support services from IHS. Recruitment for staff will begin soon.