The new Trinka Davis Veterans Village in Carrollton will hold its public grand opening ceremony at 1 p.m., Sept. 28, according to a Department of Veterans Affairs spokesman.

The keynote speaker will be the Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs Dr. Robert A. Petzel. Georgia Commissioner of Veterans Affairs Pete Wheeler will lead the pledge.

Other events on the agenda include a presentation of colors by the Carrollton High School color guard and a rifle demonstration by the Carrollton High rifle team.

“After the ceremonies, people will have an opportunity to tour the new facilities and a reception will follow,” said Greg Kendall, a public affairs officer of the Department of Veteran Affairs.

The clinic outpatient center is due to open for its first patients next Monday, according to Kendall. The long-term community living center will open in the near future, he said.

The Trinka Davis Foundation transferred the property deed to the VA on Aug. 16 and the VA has been busy since then, moving furniture and equipment into the building.

The Georgia Department of Veterans Service will also have an office inside the Carrollton facility, starting next Monday. The Carrollton phone number has not yet been assigned.

The center was built from funds from the foundation established by the late Katherine “Trinka” Davis, a Carroll County business leader who wanted to provide assistance to veterans.

Outpatient services offered in the 25,000-square-foot clinic will include primary care, home based primary care, mental health, physical and occupational therapy, vision, dental, podiatry (foot medicine), audiology and other specialties from visiting medical specialists and tele-medicine through the latest technology in video teleconferencing, according to Gary Bruton, center administrator.

“For example, if a patient needs dermatology service, we can put him in the teleconferencing room,” Bruton said. “The resolution is so good that we can zoom right in on a skin lesion and the dermatologist on the other end can read it and determine if the patient needs to go to Atlanta for a biopsy.”

He said many of the employees are already hired and others are “in the pipeline” for initial staffing of the clinic.

Bruton said earlier this year that the Atlanta VA had identified patients enrolled in the Atlanta system who currently live within driving distance of the Carrollton clinic.

“Patients in the local commuting area should be receiving letters in the mail from the VA,” he said.

The 42-bed community living center will provide veterans needing inpatient rehabilitation with private rooms in a home-like atmosphere, including kitchen, laundry areas, fitness room, celebration room and courtyard areas.

Bruton said earlier this year that about 3,000 veterans are anticipated to use the primary care services at the Carrollton clinic.