Salinas >> With the opening of the VA/DoD Clinic in Marina having been delayed from spring to late summer, demand remains high for volunteers to drive a government van that transports veterans to the VA’s Palo Alto clinics.

At the time of its dedication ceremony in October, it was believed the Major General William H. Gourley VA-DoD Outpatient Clinic would be open sometime around March. But that has been pushed back.

“We’re aiming for early August as the target” for the opening, said Jim Romer, project manager VA Palo Alto. “It’s been delayed a couple of months by construction.”

The project manager said furniture and equipment installation, as well as additional technical and staff training, are also factors in the postponement.

The clinic is the second joint health care facility in the nation and the first built specifically for cross-service cooperation in all stages of health care, meaning the Veterans Administration and the Department of Defense would work under one roof for the benefit of active-duty personnel, veterans and their families.

“We’re not sure, but we’re hoping the numbers (of veterans who need rides) decrease because more clinics are here,” said Joan Roberts, veterans affairs office driver coordinator, who noted demand for volunteer drivers is always high “with people’s lives changing, or getting a job, or whatever.

“I’d like to be put out of business,” she said.

In the meantime, Roberts and her crew continue to provide the service which supplies transportation for veterans to get to their health care appointments.

Drivers must have a regular class C California driver’s license, a clean Department of Motor Vehicles record, an interest in helping veterans, and be at least 21 years of age.

There is no need to be a veteran to volunteer, but volunteers must be ready to commit to at least one day a month.

A driver’s day starts at 6:15 a.m. and can go as late as 5 p.m., though most days drivers are done by 3 p.m., said Roberts.

Other options are available to veterans who need to get to the VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, including a VA shuttle from Fort Ord, but it has a shorter operation time than the county’s van.

The Monterey County veterans transport van leaves the Monterey County Courthouse in Salinas at 6:30 a.m., arrives at its destination around 9 a.m. and returns only when the last veteran using the county van is finished.

“Monterey County Military and Veterans Affairs Office provides us with a van and maintains it,” said Roberts. “It’s stored at the courthouse so the driver comes in and drives off.”

A round-trip to the VA Clinics in Palo Alto is about 200 miles.

Roberts was a volunteer driver herself when she joined the cause in 2005. She drove for three years before taking over as coordinator, scheduling drivers and making sure veterans get to their appointments.

To become a volunteer driver, call Roberts at 831-595-0714 or the Monterey County Military and Veteran Affairs Office at 831-647-7613.

“The first year I ended up writing policies and procedures so people know what we’re doing,” said Roberts. “Scheduling is difficult because they have lives and they’re volunteering, so I’m waiting for (the VA/DoD Clinic) to open and maybe in six months, we’ll see how it goes.”

The $100 million, three-story clinic sits on 14 acres of former Army land, has 150,000 square feet of administrative and medical clinic space including primary care, mental health, audiology and speech pathology, podiatry, optometry/opthamology and dermatology, and is expected to serve more than 80,000 people.

James Herrera can be reached at 831-726-4344.