Wednesday, May 21, 2025
The Denton Chamber of Commerce officially opens VFW Post 2205. (Second from left: Mario Pena, Jim Davenport and Tim Middleton cut the ribbon on the new gaming center)
DENTON (人妻中出视频), Texas 鈥� A dream two years in the making has become reality at Denton鈥檚 , thanks to a collaboration between the post and the .
鈥淭his gaming center will help save lives,鈥� said Post Commander Tim Middleton, 鈥淚 cannot stress how thankful we are to all our partners who helped make this happen.鈥�
The idea took shape in 2022, when Middleton and VFW Service Officer Tim Qualls met with Jim Davenport, 人妻中出视频鈥檚 director of and fellow VFW member. They were joined by Jessica Chapman, senior director of development with . While initially discussing a , the conversation shifted to how the VFW could better serve younger generations of veterans.
人妻中出视频鈥檚 director of veteran services and fellow VFW member Jim Davenport testing out a computer with Mario Pena and Dylan Wray
鈥淚 told them then that we needed to get ahead of this because gaming is the future, and we stand to be the first VFW to establish this,鈥� Davenport said. 鈥淚 had this crazy dream, and now it鈥檚 come true thanks to a lot of hard work from a lot of people.鈥�
Inspired by a U.S. Department of Defense report on the benefits of gaming spaces, the post voted to create one of its own.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen that veterans are not walking into their local VFW. They鈥檙e feeling isolated and unsupported,鈥� Middleton said. 鈥淥ur Vietnam and Cold War vets wanted to create something that speaks to younger generations.鈥�
Dylan Wray, assistant director of , guided the post through every step 鈥� from equipment recommendations to campus tours.
鈥淒ylan鈥檚 patience was Herculean,鈥� Middleton said. 鈥淭hese are guys in their 70s and 80s with a thousand questions.鈥�
Wray also made accessibility suggestions and helped ensure the right setup for long-term success.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 serve, but both my grandfathers did,鈥� Wray said. 鈥淚t meant a lot to me to
help and to share what I know.鈥�
Chapman promoted the project to university and community leaders, building awareness and support. Additional help came from Regiment Gaming, an esports group in Plano focused on supporting veterans. The project also received support from the city of Denton, the Denton Chamber of Commerce and EGA Construction, a veteran-owned company that built the room in just two months.
鈥淕aming has a way of keeping people connected when everything else feels far away,鈥� said Mario Pena, assistant quartermaster at the post and a business administration graduate student at 人妻中出视频. In his role, he helps manage the post鈥檚 finances and operations.
鈥淲hen I came home from being stationed in Japan, it was 3 a.m. and I hopped on Xbox to play with a buddy who was still overseas. I sent him a quick message to join me. Years later, he told me that invite came at a time when he was in a really dark place. That鈥檚 the kind of impact gaming can have 鈥� that鈥檚 how powerful that connection can be, even when you鈥檙e miles apart.鈥�
The new space features 10 state-of-the-art computers, with plans to add consoles and virtual reality gaming soon. The post has already hosted its first tournament.
鈥淲e are transforming the VFW鈥檚 perspective on gaming,鈥� Middleton said. 鈥淎nd we couldn鈥檛 have done it without the input from our partners at 人妻中出视频.鈥�
Dylan Wray, assistant director of 人妻中出视频鈥檚 Esports program is sitting at a console talking with other visitors playing their own video game's.
From 鈥� General News