By Erin Peacock, Special to Independent Newsmedia

Park Wood Retirement Community, an independent and assisted living community for seniors in Surprise, has introduced a new Veterans Aid program offering significantly reduced monthly rental fees, discounted by as much as 50 percent, to U.S. veterans, who do not qualify for the Aid & Attendance program offered by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.

The new program was created by Sunshine Retirement Living, a family-owned senior living management company, which operates Park Wood and 19 other senior communities in eight states, to assist the nation’s U.S. veterans and honor their service.

“Veterans are one of America’s greatest assets, and we wish to honor them by establishing this innovative Veterans Aid program that will dramatically reduce their monthly rents at our Park Wood retirement community in Surprise,” said Luis Serrano, CEO, Sunshine Retirement Living. “While the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provides some wonderful assistance programs, oftentimes veterans may not qualify for various reasons. We have designed our Veterans Aid program to allow local veterans the opportunity to live and flourish in a welcoming home at Park Wood.”

To qualify for the program, local veterans must not meet the criteria for the Aid & Attendance program. They must also provide DD-214 discharge papers and two years of tax returns demonstrating an income level of $24,000 or less, and possess no assets that would disqualify them for the discounted lease rents.

Since its inception more than 20 years ago, Sunshine Retirement Living’s mission has been to create senior living communities where all residents and staff become family.

Park Wood amenities as part of the monthly rent include a wellness center, library, full-service beauty salon, bistro, theater, computer lab, ice cream parlor and game room. They also receive local door-to-door transportation to doctor’s appointments, shopping trips or scheduled community events and activities.

Amenities also include front desk concierge services, free common area Wi-Fi, cable television, weekly housekeeping and laundry services, and on-call apartment maintenance. Each apartment includes fully equipped kitchens, individually controlled thermostat, and washer and dryer. The community also features overnight guest suites for visiting family and friends.

Park Wood is at 14581 W. Parkwood Drive, Surprise. For information, visit http://www.sunshineretirementliving.com/community-locations/surprise/.

• Editor’s note: Erin Peacock operates Peacock PR and works in conjuction with Sunshine Retirement Living.