GAINESVILLE - The permanent location for Hall and Dawson County's agency to help abused children got a start Tuesday by demolishing a house on Washington Street.
That house was the former location of the Edmondson-Telford Center for Children and when the new million-dollar facility is completed on the site in early 2008, it will house Edmondson-Telford and CASA, the Court Appointed Special Advocate for children, according to Executive Director Connie Stephens.
"This facility is going to meet a great need in this community for the children that we serve," Stephens said. "This is a permanent home for our agencies and the children that we serve."
Jane Carpenter with Edmondson-Telford Center said the new center would provide 'one-stop shopping' for all services needed by child abuse and neglect victims in Hall and Dawson Counties in the Northeast Georgia Court Circuit.
"They can come here and work with law enforcement and DEFACS as well as CASA and we will coordinate all those services," Carpenter said.
Major League baseball Hall of Fame member Phil Niekro also witnessed the demolition at curbside and said he had waited for this day for ten years.
Niekro serves on the Edmondson-Telford Board of Directors.
"Hopefully we're going to get this new one going, it's state of the art and it's so much needed in Hall and Dawson County," Niekro said.
Niekro said an upcoming golf tournament November 8th at Chateau Élan will benefit the new center and support its construction.
"We've been doing it for 11 years, but you never have enough dollars to get something like this going," Niekro said.
"CASA has been fortunate enough to be recipients of the 2007 Medical Center Open this year; that put us on the way to raising some our funds," Stephens said.
"We still have a little ways to go and any donations would be greatly appreciated and tax deductible."
Thursday
June 12th, 2025
7:49AM
