By Ray Cox, Program Director
On May 24, after successfully taking in our first residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, the WestCare Georgia Guidance Center officially opened! There were over 70 guests in attendance including local dignitaries, business owners, WestCare senior leadership, members of our WestCare Advisory Committee, and Alumni of the program. Among those in attendance was Pastor for Christ Chapel Church, Hugh Smith; Lamar County Commissioner, Ryran Traylor; WestCare Advisory Chair, Dr. Eugene Walker; Regional Vice President, Stephen Wright; Georgia Vice President, Derrick Boazman; and WestCare Foundation’s Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Jason Engel.
The residents and staff worked tirelessly to prepare for the event, sharing in the cooking of the hamburgers and hot dogs and preparing the grand spread for the guests. The facility was standing tall and is the crown jewel of the WestCare Georgia facilities!
The program started with an invocation by Pastor Hugh Smith, followed by our keynote speaker, Commissioner Traylor. Stephen Wright shared WestCare Foundation’s history and overview. Derrick Boazman spoke of the history of WestCare Georgia, sharing about the runaway that was found in Nevada at WestCare, which sparked the initiation of WestCare coming to Georgia. Michael Langford was the person who went to Nevada and his passion for helping people started the programs in Georgia. Dr. Walker spoke of Georgia’s history and Michael Langford’s passion. I talked about the dedication of facility to the memory of Michael Langford and emceed the program. Residents and alumni took guests on a tour of the facility and discussed the day-to-day operations of the program.
