ROCK HILL – Center for Discovery founder and CEO Patrick Dollard has been called a visionary for his lifetime of work with children with developmental disabilities.
On Friday, local, state and federal officials ceremonially broke ground in Rock Hill for the Center’s new Specialty Hospital that Dollard said will allow children to transition back to their home and into their communities.
(c) video, photo – Mid-Hudson News Network
“It is going to be one of a kind in the country that is really trying to assess and support families in that crazy crisis time when they are told they have a child with a disability and don’t know what to do and we hope to offer that,” he said.
U.S. Senator Charles Schumer has been a driving force behind the project and securing funding to make it a reality. He has supported it since he first learned of the plan.
“That would not only help the hundreds of children that would come here but millions literally who would learn from what is discovered from the Center for Discovery and spread it worldwide. So it is an amazing beacon; an amazing opportunity,” he said.
The USDA provided a $35 million loan for the project, secured under the leadership of former State Director Richard Mayfield.
In addition to the 1,700 people the center employs now, the new hospital will employ another 400 with 150 construction jobs.
