COEUR d’ALENE — Veteran Frank Conrad was living where there was too much noise, too many people and a few too many barking dogs. 

He couldn't take it. Not with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety already keeping him on edge.

“I just couldn't deal with it anymore. I needed a quiet place,” he said. 

Conrad found it in Coeur d’Alene. 

Melissa Hostetler earlier this year opened the city’s first medical foster home for veterans through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane. 

In a clean, well-kept home on a street with little traffic, Hostetler provides a room, meals and good conversation. 

For Frank Conrad, it’s exactly what he was hoping to find. 

“This is nice and quiet and well-run,” he said. 

VA medical foster homes are privately owned residences where the owner lives and provides continuous care and supervision to paying veterans, with assistance from relief caregivers. 

The owner/caregiver can help the veteran carry out daily activities like getting dressed, transportation and coordinating appointments. 

The VA ensures the caregiver is well-trained.

Hostetler, who can serve up to three veterans, said it is going well since opening in January.  

“I just really wanted to start helping out the veterans in our community,” she said. 

Veteran Steve Cramer was her first client, moving in about four months ago. 

He enjoys having his own room in a smaller, cozier, more peaceful environment than the VA hospital he previously called home.

He has freedoms, like driving his pickup truck, running personal errands and going for walks. 

“I like it here,” Cramer said.

Cramer served in the Army from 1970 to 1972. 

Conrad served in the Army from 1973 to 1976 and served with the Navy for the 1980s. Both veterans spent time in Vietnam. 

Conrad was stationed offshore at Beirut in 1983 when an explosion rocked his ship. A terrorist bombing of the barracks with U.S. and French forces claimed 299 lives.

“We went to help find survivors of the blast," he said. 

Cramer and Conrad have found a common ground and share their military stories, sometimes over meals. Their shared experiences have created a camaraderie.

“They've developed good communication,” Hostetler said. 

The MFH program is a long-term care placement option. The amount each veteran pays depends on the extent of care required. 

Hostetler likes working from home and doing what she can for veterans. 

“I think our veterans are among our most cherished people,” she said. “There are so many who need help.” 

Info: Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center's MFH coordinator Jamie Pillers, 509-230-9357, [email protected]

    Melissa Hostetler joins Stephen Cramer, left, and Frank Conrad for a picture in her Coeur d'Alene medical foster home for veterans.