Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 28, 1995 TAG: 9507280070
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Paul M. Steube of South Boston will complete the term of Michael Fries of Botetourt County, the state said Thursday.
Steube served as a Navy commander in Vietnam. His term runs through June 1998.
Fries was dismissed from the board after complaints that he used foul language in front of the home's residents and their family members and that he wore his gun to the home. He has a permit to carry the gun.
Fries, Gov. George Allen's first appointee to the board, had served less than a year when his relationship with the state soured.
During that time, however, he become popular with many residents who said he listened to their complaints and got action from the management company that runs the facility.
In recent months, the home was the subject of several investigations stemming from complaints that generally had to do with inadequate staffing.
Steube said he was aware of some of the controversy but that he has never visited the home and is not familiar with the facility.
"I'm just a veteran who wants to see that veterans are not slighted," he said Thursday.
Appointed to the board for four-year terms were Bennie C. Slate, a retired Henry County barber, and Sen. Malfourd "Bo" Trumbo, a Botetourt County lawyer.
The selections were announced this week. The center is a combination adult home and nursing home that is owned by the state but operated by a private management company. The board has an executive director on site who oversees the facility's operation.
Slate, who until February operated Slate's Barber Shop in Collinsville, is a former president and chairman of the board of directors of the National Board of Barber Examiners of America. He also is a veteran and said he is a friend of Jeryl M. Martin, a Henry County resident who was reappointed to the board.
Slate said he has not visited the home, either.
Trumbo knew of his appointment weeks ago; the other men were notified of their selection by telephone this week, Slate said.
by CNB