Our project to help the Tercio de Extranjeros Foundation aims to support its initiatives in favour of veteran legionnaires who need assistance after dedicating their youth to the Legion. As a non-profit organisation, the Spanish Foundation’s mission is to offer them a home, a family and the dignity they deserve.
At present, the Foundation accommodates these veterans in houses specially designed to meet their needs, but it faces financial challenges in maintaining these places to live. This is where our project comes in: the John Cockerill Foundation is working closely with the Tercio de Extranjeros Foundation to create a “Legionnaires’ Home” in a property ideally located at the entrance to the Álvarez de Sotomayor Base, in Viator, Almería, Spain.
The property covers an area of 4,800 m² and will provide a peaceful and secure environment for the seven residents planned for this first phase of the project. The aim is to enable these veteran legionnaires to spend their final years in optimum conditions, with all the support and care they need.
One of the two crucial aspects of the project is the home’s energy autonomy. We plan to use innovative and sustainable technologies, such as solar power, to ensure that the home is environmentally friendly and economically viable in the long term. This eco-friendly approach is also in line with the Legion’s values of discipline and respect for the environment. The second crucial aspect is the optimisation of the drainage system and the recirculation of waste water through a septic tank with lagooning, so that this waste water can feed the vegetation proposed in the project. It should be noted that in this part of Spain, there is often a lot of drought in summer.
The home will provide residents with all the necessary services, including medical care, cleaning and meals adapted to their specific needs. By providing a caring family environment, the Spanish Foundation hopes to combat the social and/or family uprooting from which some veterans can suffer, enabling them to regain a degree of emotional and psychological stability.
This project to create the “Foyer des Légionnaires” aims to offer a new start to veteran legionnaires in vulnerable situations. We firmly believe that every individual, whatever their age or state of health, deserves to live in dignity and serenity after devoting part of their life to serving their nation. With the solidarity and support of all, we aspire to realise this vision and make a significant contribution to the lives of these brave men.