Ground broken on facility named for slain IU student

Sunday marked the groundbreaking ceremony for Jill's House, a temporary housing facility that will provide shelter for patients and families undergoing outpatient therapy at the IU Cyclotron Facility.\nThe house is being built in honor of IU student Jill Behrman who disappeared May 31, 2000, and whose remains were found three years later in Morgan County. John R. Myers II of Ellettsville was convicted of her murder in late October.\n"When you go through grief, you have a choice," said Peg Howard, president of Jill's House board of directors, "You can let it destroy you and have a pity party, or you can move forward and make something wonderful for other people, and that is what we have chosen to do."\nMore than 300 people attended Sunday's ceremony, she said. \n"That is rather significant, and we have had tremendous support from the Bloomington community, and it has been a very positive effect," Peg Howard said. \nTreatment takes six to eight weeks for patients at the IU Cyclotron Facility. Usually, the expense of paying for housing, transportation and many other things, along with medical costs, becomes overwhelming, she said.\n"During treatment, if you don't have a place to stay and you can't afford a place to stay, the child can't be treated, which is why Jill's House is urgently needed," Peg Howard said.\nJill's House's groundbreaking came after half of the needed $2.8 million had been donated, government regulations had been passed and the city council approved of the project. Also, Meadowood Retirement Community donated three acres in the process. \n"All that came together, and we thought it was a good time for groundbreaking for Jill's House because the trial had just ended, and we wanted something very positive for the family to look at," Peg Howard said. \nAll the money came through donations, she said, and the majority of it came from people around the community. Once construction begins, it should take 10 to 12 months before Jill's House is up and functioning. Contractors are ready to start building this spring, she said. \nThe 30,000-square-foot facility will have a great room and fireplace, chapel, kitchens, a large dining room, an outdoor dining area, a playground and underground parking. \n"It's a home away from home," Howard said. "There are no televisions; we want people out of their room and mixing with others. That's the biggest value. People will be going through the same thing, and comfort and friendships evolve. There are no barriers. It does not matter religion or skin color; if you have cancer and are being treated, you are all together."\nPeg and her husband Bud Howard, who lost their 18-year-old son to cancer, approached Eric and Marilyn Behrman about naming the house after their daughter, Jill. With their approval, Jill's House began. \n"We hope that (our son) Steve and Jill ... somehow they found each other wherever they are, and they are looking down feeling very pleased"