EVC Opening Draws Crowd

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. - About 200 people or more showed up for the ribbon-cutting celebration held Friday, June 16, at the Emory Valley Center's newest location at 723 Emory Valley Road.

As EVC President Jennifer Enderson explained in an interview with The Oak Ridger, the Emory Valley Center provides support to adults and children living with disabilities - as well as their family members.

A recent press release stated EVC "has been meeting the needs of people with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities for more than 62 years and currently provides a wide variety of services for more than 1,300 adults and children on a monthly basis in 16 East Tennessee counties."

Those counties include Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Hamblen, Jefferson, Knox, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier and Union; and during her remarks made at the June 16 ceremony, Enderson put the number of people served at 1,400.

"It's been a long eight-year journey down a long road - across the street," EVC Capital Campaign Co-Chair Dottie Thompson said at the ribbon-cutting event.

Thompson said community fundraising efforts came about after the Emory Valley Center was told by Anderson County Commission several years ago that the EVC would have to move out of the facilities it was using at that time in the old DARC (Daniel Arthur Rehabilitation Center) building on Emory Valley Road. Enderson said in an interview the county planned to demolish that building at the time.

More recent plans involve the county-owned DARC building being utilized as the site of a relocated Anderson County General Sessions Court, as previously reported in The Oak Ridger. And, while the Emory Valley Center currently still has some offices in its older building located at 715 Emory Valley Road, Enderson indicated those offices will move as well to the new EVC facility at 723 Emory Valley Road.

Capital Campaign Co-Chair Thompson said she and the late Dr. Gene Caldwell, a longtime community leader who served Oak Ridge and the surrounding communities for years as both a children's doctor and a state legislator, worked to find donations to support the new building's construction. Thompson, many other speakers and event attendees in general paid their respects to Caldwell who died in early March 2017.

"Our greatest regret is that he isn't here to see the results of his efforts," said Thompson, while EVC President Enderson announced that the new facility has been named The Caldwell-Thompson Building in honor of the Capital Campaign's co-chairs.

"I know that Gene is looking down with a huge smile on his face," Enderson said during the recent ceremony.

Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, also spoke of the man who served in the state Legislature with him.

"Even though (Gene Caldwell) is not with us, the legacy that he and Dottie built will go on for years to come," said McNally, who along with state Rep. John Ragan, R-Oak Ridge, presented a framed Tennessee resolution to Caldwell's surviving family members lauding the East Tennessee community leader's service and accomplishments.

The lieutenant governor made a point of emphasizing that the Tennessee resolution not only underscores former state Rep. Caldwell's specific service to the Legislature and the state in general, but "more importantly to his community." Caldwell's time served in the U.S. Navy was also recognized.

Other event speakers included the Rev. Bob Cantrell, EVC Board President John Eschenberg, Hickory Construction Vice President of Commercial Operations Chris Duncan, Michael Brady Inc. Vice President Bill Steverson and EVC Vice President of Community Engagement Janet Wood.

*** After the very well-attended ribbon-cutting ceremony was concluded, visitors and guests were encouraged to tour the new Emory Valley Center facility and ask questions.

The new building has a beautiful "state of the art" basketball court/gym for activities such as Special Olympics' training. The Oak Ridger has been told both recently and in earlier interactions with the Emory Valley Center that the DARC building's old gymnasium hasn't always been available nor is it fully equipped, and the facilities at both the city of Oak Ridge as well as Kern Memorial United Methodist Church in Oak Ridge have been used by EVC in the past.

Another area of the new building is a clinic area. And, according to EVC Professional Services Director Amber Taylor, the Emory Valley Center's new facility affords EVC the opportunity to provide additional "in-house services."

More specifically, Taylor said the Emory Valley Center has added a speech pathologist and the new building also provides space for a new physical therapy room. EVC President Enderson said a grant from Walmart helped pay for two pieces of equipment and the Emory Valley Center is looking to hire a physical therapist in the future.

Additionally, work-force development services will continue at the new facility.

"We put them in the community to work," EVC Workforce Development Director Conya Mull stated in regards to the Center's long-touted workforce services for people living with disabilities.

EVC President Ender-son recommended that people wanting to learn more about these and other services should visit the new facility at 723 Emory Valley Road or visit the Center's web-site at www.emoryvalleycenter.org.

Call Ben Pounds at (865) 220-5502 and follow him on

Twitter @Bpoundsjournal.