SCARC unveils new community center

Augusta — SCARC recently completed its new community center at 4 Camre Drive in Hampton Township in Newton, with doors opening today, Oct. 14. A three-year project, the 15,000 square foot building will house three of SCARC’s eight day programs, a staff training facility and offices for its employment connections program and transition staff. The unveiling of the new center will include remarks from Michael P. Tilton, SCARC president; Howard Henderson, USDA state director; Kenneth Drewes, USDA director, business and community programs; Janis Rega, USDA senior area specialist; the Honorable Steven Oroho, senator of the 24th District; Christopher Carosine, representing Congressman E. Scott Garrett; and Jeffrey Parrott, Sussex County Freeholder Director. The event will be catered by Krave café and caters from Newton. The $2.5 million facility was financed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development Administration, as well as Lakeland Bank and New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities. Capital donors of the center also include the Estate of Mildred H. Eickmann, the Ruth and Jerome A. Siegel Foundation and other donors. “Our new building is a big win not just for SCARC, but for the individuals and families that we serve,” said Richard Lecher,CEO of SCARC. “We will now be able to conduct our programs in a centralized, more spacious location that will be far more cost effective for our organization.” The first floor of the center is divided into three sections to house the three different day programs that are moving from other leased facilities into the new building. One of the three programs will not be moving, but expanding its current operation. SCARC’s Harvest Home food program will occupy 2,000 square feet of the first floor in the new building with hopes to serve at least 500 more families than it currently does. At the original facility in Ogdensburg, SCARC’s clients serve 500 families in the surrounding area. The second floor will house employee offices, work stations, a conference room and an open classroom for staff training. For more information about SCARC, visit www.scarc.org or call 973-383-7442.