ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — Ten years ago, Robertsdale Mayor Charles Murphy, Dr. Keith Cooper of the Robertsdale Industrial Board and Kathy Fleet, Executive Director of the Association of Retarded Citizens of Baldwin County, had a vision for a training facility that would serve the special needs citizens of Baldwin County.

And on Wednesday at 10 a.m. that vision became reality as the ribbon cutting and open house was held for the new 32,0000 square foot ARC shelter, training and linen center in the Robertsdale Industrial Park at 22860 McAuliffe Drive.

The $ 8.8 million facility was funded by a $5.6 million loan from the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development division along with a $3.2 million FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) grant.

According to a USDA press release, the funding was awarded in 2008 and “not only will this center provide vocational work opportunities and individualized task training, it will also serve as a special-needs evacuation shelter for Baldwin County. The loan was provided through the USDA Rural Development’s community facilities program and this funding is used to develop essential community facilities in rural areas and towns of up to 20,000 in population.”

Ronald Davis, State Director of USDA Rural Development, was on hand for the opening along with U.S. Congressman Jo Bonner (R), Mark Faulkner, FEMA representative, Mayor Murphy, Mayor Billy Middleton (Loxley) and Mayor Tim Wilson (Silverhill), representatives from U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby’s offices, ARC Board of Directors and other Baldwin County community and business leaders.

In his welcoming remarks, Murphy thanked those in attendance for all the hard work they had done and explained that by “working together we have done something great and the clients the ARC represents have hope for the future and the safety of a shelter. As the psalmist said in Psalm 16:9, ‘My flesh shall also dwell in hope’.”

Built to be able to withstand a Category 5 hurricane, the building can hold 373 special needs clients during a disaster and also has a state-of -the-art laundry facility that can process nine million pounds of linens a year and offers many opportunities for the special needs population to have employment, Fleet said.

“We have been so fortunate to receive this kind of support to care for our special needs population. I want to thank our board of directors for allowing me to seek assistance for this project and thank Taylor Rider and BRATS (Baldwin Rural Area Transportation System) for getting our 185 day program participants to where they need to go in the county five days a week. It makes our operation run smoothly and I want to thank everyone in the county for this community effort,” Fleet said.

ARC began providing services in the 1950’s to a small number of people in one location and now it offers, in addition to day programs, 24 hour residential services seven days a week and has become one of the largest employers in Baldwin County.

The building will have 11 specific training classrooms for physical therapy, exercise, recreation, independent living, computer access, music therapy, sensory activities, a green room with cots, vocational activities and prevocational activities as well as a cafeteria. It will also be able to consolidate many ARC day training programs into one localized facility.

Congressman Bonner reflected in his remarks about his experience with working with special needs clients while attending the University of Alabama.

“I volunteered at the state hospital and met the best people in the world there. Most of them had a hard time doing the simplest tasks but I will never forget a man I met called the ‘sheriff’. He always had a smile for me and made me feel good about being an American. And knowing him made a real positive impact on me,” Bonner said.

Because of his experience with the sheriff, Bonner expressed great appreciation for what ARC is doing in Robertsdale. “I am so glad to see your hard-earned money put to use so well and while there is so much doom and gloom in the world and so many challenges we face, I know when I come to Robertsdale and see the work you are doing here, I realize how blessed we are. I am proud to see so many people here willing to serve with love the special needs population of Baldwin County. This is a place where good can be done everyday.”

Alabama FEMA Director Art Faulkner also expressed excitement in seeing the building come together and see tax dollars pulled back down to the local level and put to good use. “This is the first facility in the state to be used for multipurpose needs and it’s a shining example of what all centers should be. We need to take care of people when we can and need to work with local officials to make sure money is available to do this.”

Working for the federal government for 32 years, Davis said this part of his job is so rewarding because he gets to see such good results. “This is part of what we do in rural Alabama to make it better. Funding this project created an opportunity for people to have a place in life they would have never had before and everyone’s vision made it work and their commitment is a great thing to see. This facility will serve as a refuge for those who need it and I really appreciate the opportunity to serve you here.”

The center will officially be open to receive clients on April 1 and ARC of Baldwin County is one of the 29 chapters of ARC of Alabama. Inc. where their mission is “to secure for all individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities the opportunity to choose and realize their goals of where and how they learn, work, play and worship.”