JACKSONVILLE, Florida – Sisler Johnston Interior Design served on the design team for the new Greater Jacksonville Area USO Welcome Center at the Jacksonville International Airport.

“It was a privilege for me to work with Builders Care and help make the center look and feel like a ‘home away from home’ for our military heroes,” said Judith Sisler Johnston, president, Sisler Johnston Interior Design and ASID Allied Member. “Following the dedication ceremony, I met a grandmother comforting a crying child whose father had just departed for Iraq and a soldier en route to Walter Reed Hospital after being wounded in Afghanistan. I witnessed first-hand how important the USO center is to military travelers and their families.”

The welcome center’s space was donated by the Jacksonville Aviation Authority. The new center is more than twice the size of the former facility and provides a place to send off and welcome military personnel deploying overseas and upon their return home.

Builder Care’s design vision was to create a state-of-the-art welcome center with the comforts of home. The design team reviewed the Haskell Company’s interior space plan, which provided different zone areas for the reception desk, snack area, entertainment and computer work spaces. Sisler Johnston selected all the interior finishes, which included paints, flooring, cabinetry, counter tops, lighting and furnishings. The new facility seats 24 and has a large screen television, video games, computers with Internet access, refrigerator, microwave and comfortable seating areas. “I selected furniture, fabrics and finishes to give the space the warmth of a coffee shop or café,” Sisler Johnston said.

Builders Care also wanted the room to have a fireplace, a traditional symbol of family and warmth. Sisler Johnston did not think it would be possible to put in a fireplace in a commercial space like an airport. However, with the innovations of technology, an electric fireplace was installed. The fireplace has a millwork surround and a stone façade, making it appear like a family room entertainment wall. A team from Woodsman Kitchens and Floors worked with Sisler Johnston to design a millwork surround so that it would be functional and also offer great appeal.

The reception desk was designed with the same brown cherry wood used for the cabinetry. A beautiful framed copy of the Declaration of Independence is its backdrop. The floors look like hardwood, but a laminate was used for durability and ease of care. The café portion of the large room has two bistro tables, each with four bar chairs. The tables have snake stone mosaic top inlays. Sisler Johnston Interior Design had glass tops fitted over the inlays to preserve the beauty as well as accommodate its commercial use.

“This is a technique borrowed from our work in the hospitality area,” Sisler Johnston said. “Five-diamond hotels offer their guests fine wood furniture. Glass tops are applied to prevent damage from drinks and cleaning products.”

The USO offers traveling military personnel fresh coffee, snacks and soft drinks. The large kitchen has a full size stainless steel refrigerator and microwave. Double trash bins are concealed within the contemporary cabinets.

“I used foot-long brushed stainless steel handles to reinforce the center’s high-tech appearance as well as the dual function of the counter bar, which is also used as a computer work space,” Sisler Johnston said.

Tall millwork wardrobes provide storage for military travelers’ duffle bags. A cozy reading corner is situated adjacent to a library wall filled with books and a custom-framed bulletin board. Two lounge chairs are covered in modern geometric upholstery in regal shades of burgundy, navy and gold. The two chairs share a lamp table and its lamp has four American eagles as a motif.

The rest of the room is an entertainment area. The large flat screen television is mounted above the stone fireplace with millwork surround. Sisler Johnston also incorporated a leather sectional sofa recently purchased by USO into the design plan.

“Our residential designers are accustom to assisting homeowners who add new furniture pieces to existing ones,” Sisler Johnston said.

Sisler Johnston designed a textile-covered cocktail ottoman to coordinate with the burgundy sectional and added coordinating pillows to the sofa. When not in use as an ottoman, it can be pushed alongside the sectional sofa for added sleeping space.

To achieve the warmth of a home, Sisler Johnston added custom drapery panels to the storefront windows. The panels feature bold inserts of burgundy and gold in a design that hints of a military flag. Above the staggered cabinet heights, Sisler Johnston also added greenery and accessories in a stars and stripes representation. One USO volunteer, a retired admiral, told Sisler Johnston the welcome center had the look and feel of a family room in a country club home.

“We wanted to make the new USO Welcome Center feel as close to home as possible,” said Bill Wilson, executive director for Builders Care. “These young military members are the best this nation has and they deserve the best we can give them.”

Builders Care is a nonprofit division of the Northeast Florida Builders Association. Since 2001, the organization has provided repair services to seriously deteriorate homes and enabled many people, particularly seniors and others living with disabilities on fixed incomes, to continue living in their own homes. For more information, visit www.builderscare.org.

Sisler Johnston Interior Design offers comprehensive interior design services for residential and commercial clients. The company designs private residences, builder model homes, community centers, hotel guest accommodations and office suites. Sisler Johnston Interior Design also provides marketable designs for senior lifestyle communities.

ASID Allied Member Judith Sisler Johnston and her team of licensed, talented designers help clients enhance their surroundings with designs that range from traditional elegance to classic contemporary style. Sisler Johnston is Jacksonville’s leading authority on designing spectacular spaces that are beautiful, functional and reflect her clients’ personalities and lifestyles.

Sisler Johnston’s design work has been featured in numerous books, newspapers, magazines and television programs. Sisler Johnston Interior Design celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2004 and has been recognized with more than 100 industry awards.

For more information about Sisler Johnston Interior Design, call (904) 288-0908 or visit www.sislerjohnston.com.

Photography:

1. Bistro – The bistro was designed by Sisler Johnston to be as informal and cozy as a breakfast room.

2. Computer Bar – A computer bar overlooks the entertainment center. The space has a large sectional sofa. Sisler Johnston added a coffee ottoman and custom pillows.

3. Bill Wilson and Julie Castine from Builders Care work with Ashley Riggins and Judith Sisler Johnston on the USO installation.