By Stephen Smoot
Few people have gotten more excited about a new sign than Fredericka Ford and Amanda Mowery.
Ford, chief operating officer of Liberty Community Programs, and Amanda Mowery, who directs operations on the ground at the former Navy base, described why.
“We just got our sign! We’re changing the trajectory,” Ford said. She explained how the installation of an electronic sign to replace that which denoted the former military base changed the mood of staff and emphasized the new mission to the community.
Ford shared steps underway to prepare the facility to open for patients and clients. These include the applications to get waivers to West Virginia Certificate of Need laws. These represent a normal, often difficult, barrier that health care facilities must address if they wish to open in the Mountain State.
Liberty Community Programs, which will operate the facility, had to work to get multiple CON waivers due to plans to offer different types of treatment to both adults and children. These include residential and outpatient options.
Programs will include, but are not limited to, help for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, comprehensive substance abuse treatment, psychiatric care, different forms of therapies, and much more. Services will address specific needs of the State of West Virginia in its efforts to help with these issues, especially in fields affected by facility closures.
Ladale Jackson, also with LCP, had earlier explained how the organization would scale up step by step and not move too quickly. That, he stated in a previous interview, led to other attempts to establish similar programs at Sugar Grove not succeeding. Mowery shared that by year five, LCP will employ approximately 500.
Until the state completes its processes of approval, most of the hiring has not taken place yet. That said, Mowery shared that some who have accepted jobs live in Pendleton County and resigned from jobs in Harrisonburg, Virginia, to come home for employment.
Treatment, recovery, and learning, however, must optimally take place in a locale where those needing help also feel safe. Both Ford and Mowery reiterated the importance of creating that condition of safety and how the location contributes.
Mowery, a three decade veteran of Pendleton County’s emergency services, shared that the isolated facility’s stunning scenic beauty will help to create the right environment. “No matter what room you are in anywhere on the base,” Mowery, “you have a window where you can see natural beauty.”
Overall, both emphasized the goal of “creating a safe space.” Sugar Grove lies far from other towns and cities. Sugar Grove has layers of boundaries, both natural and man-made, that reinforce a sense of safety and security within the iron fenced perimeter. “The idea is for those here to not feel like they are in an institution, but members of a community,” explained Ford.
Many come to such facilities bereft of support from family or friends. Driving support systems away is common for those experiencing mental illness or drug addiction. Ford stated that “we are their family while they are working through this next chapter.” She again referred back to the importance of environment, saying, “What we bring is a safe space. It’s very calming.”
“It’s something to be a part of changing lives,” added Ford.
That sense of community will be organic and expansive where possible. Ford described vocational training programs that “give kids and adults an opportunity to learn a skill” while also developing confidence and the senses of worth and hope.
For those with more broad-based educational needs, the facility will “work with the department of education “to provide certified schooling experiences for elementary, middle, and high school aged students.”
Another aspect of the community model lies in how LCP will use base housing. Those meeting a certain level of criteria may live with other patients in the former base housing. Many of the homes will have three residents and staff present for 24 hours a day. The former barracks will be refitted for safety to house patients with more intense needs.
During the next five years, LCP plans to roll out a full suite of behavioral health services. Treatment for those with psychiatric conditions, drug addiction, and developmental disabilities will round out many of the services. Ford stated that LCP aspires to be “a model of what health care could be” by providing what “services should be.”
Part of moving forward from old models may include a family centered treatment concept where, in appropriate situations, mothers receiving care may not need to be separated from their children. Additionally, Ford stated that the plan is not necessarily static, but “can adapt to meet changing needs” in the region or around the state. Changing the model somewhat to help to meet the state’s challenges with children serves as an example of flexibility.
The idea of community also includes opening the facility as much as possible like the United States Navy did during their tenure of operation and ownership. That will likely include LCP operating its own fire and rescue units to not only mitigate any burden on local volunteers, but also to provide assistance and aid when possible.
Mowery shared that LCP has also reached out to Pendleton County Schools and other area agencies about taking some of the surplus furniture on site. She stated that since the taxpayers purchased the items to begin with, making sure that what LCP cannot use finds a good home is important to administrators.
Ford praised West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey for “bringing folks back to West Virginia” and working to make sure that families can “be successful.” She added, “We’ve gotten overwhelming support from the State Legislature as well.”
