Volunteers pulled into the parking lot of the former Hotel Jonas around 7 a.m. on Sunday to put the finishing touches on the building that will soon house 13 homeless United States veterans.

By 1 p.m., the lawn was filled with people as the official unveiling of the Major Paul Syverson Veterans Sanctuary VALOR Clinic was about to begin.Located at the intersection of Route 534 and Jonas Road, the clinic will house veterans for 90 to 120 days at a time to get them on their feet and transitioned back into society.It is named after Army Maj. Paul R. Syverson III, who was killed in action in 2004, while serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom."The motto in our unit was De Opresso Liber, which means to free the oppressed," said Mark Baylis, a retired U.S. Army Special Forces sergeant major, who co-founded the VALOR Clinic and served with Syverson. "I can think of no more oppressed people than those veterans living in the woods."The first veteran will be arriving at the clinic on Oct. 25, according to volunteers. More potential residents are being interviewed. Only men will be eligible for the program.Veterans will go through counseling and a life skills program, teaching them how to survive on their own, help them get jobs and how to manage a checking account.The 13 rooms feature much of the original furniture of the Hotel Jonas, which closed in 2012 for financial reasons.Hundreds toured the facility Sunday giving rave reviews of the work done inside."I think the transformation has been incredible," said Maggie Larson of Mount Pocono."I came here a few times when it was a restaurant and I think it's wonderful what VALOR has done with it. I'm happy to see it will be put to good use."After retiring from the military due to a back injury in 2006, Baylis was working at a food pantry when he began noticing that veterans made up most of the clientele."I knew at that point I had to do something," he said.Baylis, along with VALOR board member Glenn Lippincott, took state Rep. Mario Scavello, R-176, and state Rep. Rosemary Brown, R-189, on a tour of the encampments and enclaves where veterans called home in the region."I saw six or seven plastic tents where veterans were staying and I told Mark and Glen, if you find a place to buy, we will get you the state money," Scavello said."It is inexcusable that so many veterans are homeless. They put their lives on the line, yet come home to shattered lives. I'm so grateful to Valor's efforts."The nonprofit VALOR, which stands for Veterans Assisted Living Out Reach, closed on the building on June 16 of this year.In many ways, that was ironic.The injury that ended Baylis' military career occurred on June 16, 2006. It is also the date in 2004 when Syverson was killed.A lot of fundraising went toward getting the building into a condition where it could house veterans.On Sunday, numerous groups, including the Jim Thorpe boys' soccer team, announced additional donations totaling around $10,000. Jim Thorpe soccer players also assisted with landscaping at the site."Without the volunteers, we couldn't have made this happen," Baylis said.While the clinic is a major step in getting homeless veterans the shelter and help they need for a transition back into society, it may not be the last one."If we need another home like this, we will find another one," Scavello said. "My wish is we continue to do this until every one of our veterans have a place they can go to transition back into society."