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'New Memories': New Horizons Adult Day Services moves its program from Boonville to Yadkinville
Journal Photo by Jennifer Rotenizer
Bobbie Lineberry practices her role as Snow White in a play that will be performed by clients of New Horizons Adult Day Services in Yadkinville.
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Published: May 12, 2009
YADKINVILLE - On the first day that New Horizons Adult Day Services was in its new building on West Main Street, Leah Hanes had all of the adults in the program dip their hands in paint and put them on a lavender-colored wall.
It will be something to remember the day by.
New Horizons runs a day program for developmentally disabled adults. The program helps some of them with job placement and vocational training, depending on their ability, and has classes and activities for others.
In a rural county such as Yadkin, where resources are scattered, New Horizons has the only program for developmentally disabled adults.
"They have a chance to get out and socialize," said director Terri Roberts. "Otherwise they would be home. We need the program because we serve a population of people who have wants and goals and needs just like everybody else. They have the same hopes, dreams and rights that anyone on the planet has."
In April, the program moved into its new home -- a 7,200-square-foot building -- from an old school building in Boonville.
New Horizons' building has a classroom for classes taught by an instructor from Surry Community College. There are cubicles for staff workers and a big, sunny activity room for lunch and crafts. There's also a storefront for the program's thrift store, which is open to the public. All proceeds benefit the program.
The program was known as the Adult Developmental Vocational Program, or ADVP, until last July. It was run through the Yadkin County Schools. Last year, the school system didn't renew the program's contract with Crossroads, said Terry Vestal, the president of Arc of Yadkin County. Vestal worked for the ADVP program for 23 years and retired as the director last year.
Parents and guardians expected that would eventually happen because similar programs have followed a trend of shifting from to public to private providers, she said.
"The parents initiated the change," Vestal said. "They knew New Horizons was a possibility. They wanted someone local, they wanted someone in the area that they could to directly if they had a problem."
Medicaid and other state money that comes through Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare covers the cost for most adults, except for lunch and transportation fees ($100 per month per client; lunch is $3.35 a day, or clients can bring their own).
There are 34 adults who attend the program regularly, Roberts said. Their ages range from 19 to 74. They attend from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Hanes and her husband, Stuart, have owned and operated New Horizons since July in addition to the home health-care business of the same name that they started in 2003. The businesses are separate, Leah Hanes said. They operate New Horizons as a nonprofit organization. Its official tax status is still pending, Hanes said.
James Vestal of East Bend, the vice president of Arc of Yadkin County and Terry Vestal's brother-in-law, has a younger sister, Janet, 47, who attends New Horizons. She has Down syndrome. She was nervous about a new building, but then he took her by it before the program moved.
"She kept talking about a lot of old memories at the old place," he said. "So I took her by the new building and she started talking about new memories."
Through the program, she takes computer classes, goes bowling and eats out. It's an important part of her life, he said.
"She's quiet, but she likes being around others. It's just like a job to her, or going to school. She's around her friends," he said. "It's a very caring environment. For Janet, I like that and appreciate it."
He thinks that the program's new location might be more convenient, too.
Around the building, Hanes is greeted by hugs and smiles. In one corner, two women are working on costumes for the program's annual play -- this year it's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Some of the program's clients are finishing up lunch, while others are getting ready for afternoon walks outside.
The new building is slightly smaller than the old building, but it's better organized and a more updated facility, Hanes said.
Bobbie Lineberry, 45, of Boonville, attends New Horizons and likes the new space.
"It's peaceful," she said.
■ Laura Giovanelli can be reached at 727-7302 or at lgiovanelli@wsjournal.com.
■ New Horizons Adult Day Services will present Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Yadkin County Park's amphitheater (6600 Service Road, Yadkinville). Admission is $3. Bring lawn chairs or blankets. If there is rain, the play will be moved to 533 N. Carolina Ave., Boonville.
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